Shooting Response
by Lover of Reid
Summary: Someone is shooting and killing retired FBI agents in Richmond, Virginia. Can the red cell team figure out why in time, and what's the connection to Sam?
1. Retired and Shot

**A/N: Just like I promised, here is the first chapter of my new story. Sorry its a little short, but I had the murder happen kind of quickly. I hope you like it and I will upload the next chapter as soon as I can. Like always, read and review:)**

Chapter 1- Retired and Shot

To be retired, and living in a quiet and peaceful neighborhood in Richmond, Virginia was, in Maxwell Kyle's opinion, heaven on Earth. Or at least it was for a man who had worked for the FBI for thirty-five years of his life. The quaint and quiet streets of Richmond were much more inviting for him than the busy Quantico streets. With his bag of golf clubs slung over his shoulder Maxwell gave his wife Kristy one final kiss before heading towards the car. The golf course was calling to him, just like every other day since his retirement began. Sadly he would never reach the golf course, for just after he placed his clubs in the backseat, as he reached for the driver's seat door handle a mysteriously faint popping noise ripped through the air.

The mysterious popping sound should have been a warning sign for Maxwell, because just as he heard the sound he was hit with the wind's deadly object. Paralyzed by the unexpected piercing pain Maxwell didn't even have a chance to speak or scream as a second later a second pop sounded, piercing him again. No thoughts passed through his head as Maxwell collapsed to the pavement, dead, blood pouring from the two bullet wounds in his chest. Releasing a blood curdling scream into the air Kristy Kyle ran over to her husband's dead body. Tears streaming down her cheeks Kristy knelt down beside her husband, shouting frantically for someone to help, even though it was too late…


	2. Stone Statue Briefings

**A/N: Here is the next chapter to the story's gradually slow start. Sorry that its once again a short chapter. I'm hoping that the next one will be a little longer. There will also be more physical case work taking place in the next chapter. This chapter basically set the stage for Sam's feelings on the case, and held the teams' briefing on the case. In my own opinion, I feel that the briefing itself is a little crappy, but I kept it the way that it is. So feel free to criticize the briefing if you want. Reviews are always much appreciated. Like always, read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 2- Stone Statue Briefings

Back in Quantico the Red Cell team was already assembled. Within their brightly light conference room Beth, Gina, Mick, Prophet, and a slightly confused Penelope Garcia were already seated around the long wooden rectangular table. All five of them were silent, each looking at Sam standing as equally quiet at the head of the table. The sight before them was something they have never witnessed before; no other case they had worked on in the past had ever left Sam this quiet. It was definitely a tell-tale sign of something bad to come in the case.

Standing as still as a stone statue Sam Cooper stared at his team members seated around the table, but not really seeing them at all; instead he was caught up in his own thoughts. Maxwell Kyle was just murdered, he was someone that Sam had known and worked with in the Bureau, as well as the other two victims. Someone was killing people that he once knew, and had worked with; this Unsub was somehow making it personal to Sam. Knowing this Sam made himself a mental promise to find the person responsible for all of this.

Seeing no change in Sam's silent stature in over ten minutes Beth started to feel concerned for her husband. Rising to her feet with a little difficulty due to her thirty-seven and a half weeks impregnated abdomen Beth stepped over to Sam's frozen stance. Catching no glint of recognition of her advancement upon Sam's empty face Beth gently placed her hand on Sam's arm. Immediately upon feeling Beth's hand touch his arm Sam was awoken from his thoughts. Blinking away the haziness from his eyes Sam turned his head to stare down at Beth's concerned face as she said,

"Hey, you had us all, especially me, concerned about you. We've been sitting here waiting for you to start the briefing, but instead you've just been standing here as still as a statue. Something must have had a firm hold on your thoughts, care to share?"

Appreciating Beth's and the rest of the guys' concerns Sam gave them all a small smile as he answered,

"No worries, I was just thinking about the three victims. Don't worry, I'll explain everything during the briefing…"

Waiting a second as Beth returned to her seat Sam began,

"The Henrico County Police Department in Richmond, Virginia has called and asked us for our help on a case. Now as I'm sure you all have heard, three Henrico County residences, all three retired FBI agents, have been shot and killed in front of their homes in the past two weeks…" Pressing a button on his remote Sam made three similar photos appear up on the TV monitor, "The first victim was James Harken- 54- he was the ex-leader of the FBI's Counter-Terrorism. He was shot and killed beside his car after returning home from the store picking up a few things for his wife. The second victim was Marshall Goodman- 57- he was the ex-leader of International Operations. He was shot and killed beside his car as well after returning home from picking up his grandson from soccer practice. Thankfully his grandson was already on the front steps when the shots were fired. And finally, our third and latest victim killed just this morning, was Maxwell Kyle- 60- he was ex-leader of the Criminal Investigative Division. He was shot and killed just as he was about to get into his car to go to the local golf course, his wife was watching him leave from the front door. Now according to the ME reports, all three men were killed by two shots in the chest."

Staring intently at the close up image of Marshall Goodman's bullet wounds Mick interceded,

"Looking at the photos of all three men's chest wounds, the Unsub used a .30 caliber bullet, standard for most sniper rifles, but he didn't shoot them with a sniper rifle. Based on the depth of the wound tracks it looks to me like he used some type of hunting rifle, maybe modified in some way."

Impressed by Mick's brilliant deductions based on the photos of the gunshot wounds Sam nodded his head and said,

"Good eyes Mick, looks like we'll be able to use your sniper expertise again on this case. Now, it's about an hour and a half drive to Richmond, so does anyone have any questions before we hit the road?"

Raising her hand like a student answering a question in class Gina replied,

"Just one question Coop, why exactly is Garcia here with us? I mean, is she going to stay here with Beth while the rest of us are in Richmond working the case?"

Glancing over to the slightly less confused expression painted on Garcia's face Sam replied,

"Not exactly, Garcia will be staying with Beth to keep her company during the case, just not here. Both Garcia and Beth are coming with us to Richmond, they will be working from the Henrico County Police Department with us and while the rest of us go out into the field. Now does anyone else have any questions?"

With no further questions from the team Sam nodded his head in approval, and said,

"Alright then, let's go. Girls, you three will go in one SUV while we three guys ride in the other; that alright with you?"

At the prospect of having an SUV all to themselves Gina, Beth, and Garcia had the same smile on their faces as they nodded their heads. The girls' agreeable responses given Sam lead the team out the door of the conference room, to make their way outside to the two awaiting black SUVs, with Richmond, Virginia set in their sights.


	3. Girl Talk, and Gut Feelings

**A/N: Here is the newest chapter as I promised. So far the last time I checked I've only received one review. I might consider holding off on updating till I get a few more reviews, but that might change depending upon what mood I'm in when I finishing writing the next chapter. Now I just wanted to make this additional little note- I do in fact happen to live in Richmond, Va. I have my entire life, but even with that I don't know the Henrico Police Department's address, nor have I ever been inside the place. I just wanted to get that bit of information out there. Now on to the story, like always read, enjoy, and please send me a review telling me what you think:)**

Chapter 3- Girl Talk and Gut Feelings

For the three Red Cell female team members, having an SUV all to themselves, with none of the guys was the perfect package. Being just them girls they were free to talk about anything they wished without needing to consider anyone else's preference. At around half-way through the car ride down the interstate Beth started to feel a little discomfort in her seat; not to mention it felt as if the baby was constantly doing back-flips within its womb only seemed to add to her discomfort. Noticing Beth's constant repositioning and rubbing circles on her stomach Gina, while glancing back at Beth through the rear view mirror, asked,

"Everything alright back there Beth, you've been doing a lot of wiggling around lately?"

Continuing to rub circles Beth gave Gina a reassuring smile as she replied,

"Sorry the baby is being extra active, and is making it difficult for me to get comfortable. It just keeps doing back-flips over and over; it's actually getting a little annoying."

Turning herself completely around in her seat so that she was facing Beth in the backseat Garcia said,

"I still can't believe that you guys didn't find out the baby's sex. Isn't the suspense killing you?"

Never ceasing her current movements Beth shrugged her shoulders,

"The suspense does get at me a little, but we didn't really have a choice but to be surprised. The baby is being stubborn just like Sarah was, it won't let us see between its legs."

Laughing softly Garcia turned back around in her seat. As she did the Gina followed they guys' SUV into the Henrico County Police Department parking lot. Bringing their SUV to a stop beside the other black SUV, the three women piled out of the vehicle. Joining the guys standing at the back end of their SUV the Red Cell team started making their way towards the Police station to begin working on the case.

Stepping through the main doors of the police department, after being buzzed in, the Red Cell team was met by the departments' literally buzzing atmosphere. Everywhere they looked people was hard at work on something or another. It was fairly easy to understand one of the reasons why the Henrico Chief of Police had requested their help; he needed a team who understood their perpetrator, as well as needing a helping hand. Then, from the middle of the dozens of hard working officers, someone started to make their way over to the waiting Red Cell team. He was a middle aged man with gentle brown eyes and light brown hair already peppered with gray; just by looking at the man's uniform the Red Cell team was able to identify the man as the department's Chief of Police.

Coming to stand before the Red Cell team the man gave them a friendly smile as he extended his hand out to Sam and said,

"Hello, you all must be the FBI team I requested to help with this case, I'm Chief Midston."

Returning the friendly smile Sam shook Chief Midston's hand as he said,

"Pleased to meet you Chief Midston, we're all from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit. I'm Sam Cooper, and these are my team members Agents Simms, LaSalle, Rawson, and Griffith, as well as our technical analyst Penelope Garcia."

Waiting as Chief Midston gave them each a nod hello Sam asked,

"Now Chief Midston, in light of what has happened this morning my team and I would like to get to work as fast as we can. Is there a space available for us to work so that we can get set up?"

With a single affirmative nod of his head Chief Midston replied,

"Of course, in preparation of your arrival I've had a few of my men set up our smaller secondary conference room for you all to use. Now don't be fooled by its name, the room is actually very spacious, and should fit your team's size perfectly. If you'll follow me I'll show you to it."

Acting the role of a gracious host Chief Midston started making his way across the busy department floor with the Red Cell team on his tail. Coming to the far side of the department the team found themselves facing a wall of four wooden doors, all looking exactly the same. Unaffected by the doors' identical appearances Chief Midston made his way over to the second wooden door, and quickly opened it. Remaining where he stood Chief Midston waved his arm into the open doorway, gesturing for the team to come in, which they gracious accepted. Stepping through the open doorway everyone was shocked at what they found; instead of a moderately small room as they had expected despite what Chief Midston had told them, they found themselves in a room of vast size that was more than capable of providing them each with enough space to work.

Struck dumb with awe and amazement at the room's size Garcia couldn't help but look around at everything with enlarged eyes. Already over their astonishment of the room the team quickly started to unload and set up each of their individual pieces of equipment while Sam turned to Chief Midston and said,

"Thank you Chief Midston this room will do perfectly. It is more than big enough for all of us. Um about the latest crime scene, after I talk briefly with my team, I would like to go with some of my agents and check it out ourselves."

Understanding what Sam was saying Chief Midston nodded his head once again,

"Of course Agent Cooper, I still have one of my officers stationed there at the house, I'll call him as soon as I reach my office and let him know that you all are coming."

With a final thank you Sam joined his team within the spacious room. Their single laptops already out and fully operational Beth, Prophet, Mick, and Gina sat around the large wooden table awaiting Sam's instructions while Garcia finished setting up her triple laptop computer system. Walking to the front of the room where the picture covered bulletin board stood Sam turned towards the table and said,

"Alright, here's how it's going to go, Prophet, Mick, Gina, and I are going to go visit the new crime scene. Beth I want you to stay here with Garcia, and see if you two can uncover any new, useable background information on each of our victims. There may be something there that can tell us why the Unsub chose each of them."

Trying hard not to pout at being singled out to stay behind Beth heaved a sigh of surrender as she said,

"Alright, fine. You guys just be careful out there. You never know what could happen."

Placing a quick good-bye kiss on Beth's lips Sam couldn't help but smile as he answered,

"We always are. We'll call if we find anything new at the scene, you girls be sure to do the same."

That being said Sam, Mick, Gina, and Prophet made their way out of their newly designated work area. As she watched her teammates leave Beth couldn't shake the feeling of dread that was bubbling up in the pit of her stomach. Something bad was going to happen, she could just feel it…


	4. Unexpected Victim

**A/N: Here is the newest chapter of the story. Sorry it took me a little while to upload it. I'm happy to see that more people are reading the story now. Well I don't have a lot to say this time, except, like always read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 4- Unexpected Victim

Driving down the seemingly peaceful and quiet neighborhood street Prophet brought the SUV to a stop in front of Maxwell Kyle's brick house. The front yard was empty except for the loan Henrico County cop standing up next the house, yellow crime scene tape already roping off the area. Climbing out of the SUV, having already agreed that she would be the one to talk to the officer, Gina swooped under the low hanging tape, and started making her way up the driveway to the house. Taking in the quiet scene before them Sam noticed, with private relief, that Maxwell Kyle's body had already been removed as part of the police's mandatory protocol; in its place was a chalk outline drawn onto the bloodstained driveway. Knowing that the time was literally now or never Sam stepped away from the parked SUV with Mick and Prophet by his side.

Using the same limbo maneuver that Gina had used a few moments ago Sam, Mick, and Prophet stepped under the yellow tape. His eyes set intently on the chalk outline, without pausing Sam continued to make his way forward. What happened next was unexpected of the Red Cell agents; through the air there came the faint yet unmistakable sound of a single distinct pop, followed by Sam falling to the pavement with blood pouring from his chest. Hearing the nearly undetectable sound Mick immediately honed in on his sniper skills and scanned the area, along with Prophet and Gina as they all pulled out their guns.

Searching the adjacent yards and beyond the three of them were unable to find anything to indicate where the shot was fired from. Still on high alert due to the fresh adrenaline pumping through their veins Mick, Gina, and Prophet lowered their weapons, keeping them down by their sides at the ready as they each made their way over to where Sam lay on the pavement. Noticing the copious amounts of blood pouring out of the bullet wound placed dead center of their team leader and dear friend's chest was more than enough to consume all three of them with worry. This was a scenario that they had never dealt with before, sure they had endured the aftermath of Beth being shot, but this was different Sam wasn't just their teammate, he was also their boss as well as a close friend to each of them. Choosing to take charge of the unimaginable, yet very real situation before them Prophet maneuvered himself closer to Sam.

His hand shaking from a combination of fear and adrenaline Prophet pressed his fingers firmly against Sam's blood-free neck, breathing a sigh of relief when he encountered a strong steady pulse. Glancing quickly at Mick and Gina Prophet shared,

"He's got a strong steady pulse, at least that's a good thing."

Right at that exact moment an audible groan escaped Sam's lips. Slightly disoriented as he opened his eyes Sam tried to move but was stopped when he felt someone place their hand upon his shoulder. Moving his eyes towards the source of the added weight on his shoulder Sam was met by Prophet's calm face as he said,

"Woe there Coop, we need you to stay still, and try not to move. You've been shot in the chest, and I don't want you to hurt yourself even more by trying to move."

Even though Sam saw an expression of utter calm plastered in place on Prophet's face Sam's ears detected the overwhelming fear and worry that coated the man's gentle words. Knowing that Prophet, as well as Mick and Gina, were working based on their best interests at heart for him and his survival Sam grudgingly followed Prophet's suggested orders, and didn't move; a response that filled Prophet with even more relief. Maintaining his relaxed but fixed hold on Sam's shoulder Prophet's eyes never wavered from Sam's drooping lids as he loudly exclaimed,

"Hey Mick, get on your phone, and…"

Before he could finish his sentence Mick knelt down beside him, his phone already in his hand by his side, as he reported,

"Already did it Mate. I just got off the phone with emergency dispatch, an ambulance is in route, and will be here is a few minutes."

Hiding his surprise at how Mick seemed to have read his mind Prophet nodded his head in approval as he questioned,

"What about the station? Has anyone called to report what's happened to them yet? Beth and Garcia need to know."

Seeing Mick mutely shake his head no, eyes trained on Sam's ever bleeding wound, Prophet quickly raised his head. Finding the single officer who was already on scene when they had arrived Prophet raised his voice once again as he ordered,

"You, crime scene officer, use your walkie-talkie and contact the department. Tell them a single shot was fired and that we have a FBI agent down who is severely wounded."

Face still pale in complexion from what he had just seen the officer quickly opened the channel on his walkie-talkie receiver strapped to his shoulder, and started to relay the message Prophet had just given him. Feeling no further need to watch the spooked officer perform his assigned duty Prophet returned his attention to Sam as Gina joined them in their bloody mess. Consumed with a sudden need to lighten the fear-ridden atmosphere Mick said,

"Beth is going to freak out when she hears about this. I kind of wish I could be there to see her reaction but then again, I don't."

Just like Mick had hoped Sam gave a short rough chuckle, paired with a look of pain in his eyes as he replied,

"Yeah, she's going to be pissed. I promised her that we'd be careful while we were here. So far I've done the exact opposite of what I promised her. I'm probably going to have hell to pay for this with her…Just promise me some things guys, make sure that Beth is alright, especially after she hears about this. Also, keep working on the case; don't stop working on it because of me. Keep going and find this guy. Don't worry about me; this case should still be your number one priority."

Reluctantly Prophet, Mick, and Gina gave Sam their promising vows to continue working the case. Before any of them could voice a response they were interrupted by the loud sirens of the approaching ambulance. In an entrance of bright flashing colors the ambulance pulled up in front of the brick house. Rising to their feet Prophet, Mick, and Gina stepped to the side away from Sam, to give the EMTs plenty of room to do their work. In a matter of just a few minutes the three EMTs had gotten Sam stabilized and transferred onto the stretcher, then as if sensing their connection to their wounded leader, the loan female medic turned to the three distraught Red Cell agents and said,

"Your friend is in good hands, we'll take good care of him. If you'd like to follow us we're taking him to Henrico Doctors Hospital on Forest Avenue, the ER is around the back in case any of you didn't already know. Just tell a nurse who you're there to see and they will take you to the appropriate waiting area."

Listening as the medic divulged the pressingly important information to them Prophet, Mick, and Gina raced to their parked SUV; following on the ambulance's tail as it sped towards its intended destination, leaving the police officer to once again fend for himself…


	5. Panic

Chapter 5- Panic

Back at the Henrico County Police Department settled within their spacious accommodations both Beth and Garcia were hard at work finding further background information on their three victims. Abandoning the three open files spread out upon the table's surface before her Beth wiggled herself around in her chair trying desperately to alleviate the discomfort she was currently experiencing. Ceasing her seemingly reoccurring movements with no success Beth resumed rubbing rhythmic circles on her stomach. Peaking past her recently singled out computer screen Garcia didn't miss the grimace that Beth attempted to conceal upon her face. About to open her mouth to question Beth on her concealed action Garcia was interrupted as Chief Midston walked into the room.

His unexpected visit didn't go by unnoticed by the two female FBI agents. As they turned their heads to stare at the Police Chief both Beth and Garcia immediately registered the look of regret and sadness upon his face; something terrible had happened. Fearful of what the news could be Beth quickly grasped Garcia's free hand. Taking a deep breath to prepare herself for the news Beth's voice shook slightly as she questioned,

"What's wrong Chief Midston? Has something happened?"

The sad expression etched itself deeper onto Chief Midston's face as he nodded his head,

"I'm afraid so Agent Griffith. I just got a call over the radio from Deputy Bradley, the officer I stationed at the Kyle's house, about a shooting at the crime scene. Sadly it appears that one of your team members was shot."

Hearing the piece of news tears welled up within Beth's eyes, her voice shaking worse than before as she questioned,

"Did…Did her tell you w-w-who it was that was shot?"

Diverting his eyes away from Beth's Chief Midston nodded his head once again,

"Based on the description that Deputy Bradley gave me it was Agent Cooper. He also said that the medics had arrived and were taking him to Henrico Doctors Hospital on Forest Avenue."

Devastated by the news tears cascaded down Beth's face, her body already wracked with sobs. Pulling Beth's shaking form into her arms Garcia looked over to Chief Midston's remorse-filled face and said,

"Thank you for informing us of the emergency situation Chief Midston. We really appreciate it. Do you have the address of the hospital so that we may enter it into our GPS device in the car?"

Without saying a word Chief Midston extended his hand out to Garcia, a folded piece of paper in his grasp. Taking the offered piece of paper Garcia thanked Chief Midston one final time as he quietly exited the room. Holding the paper firmly in her hand Garcia gently rubbed Beth's back as she asked,

"So do you think you're ready to head to the hospital?"

Still choked up from her tears Beth nodded her head. Intending to help Beth up from her seat Garcia rose to her feet. Her eyes still glistening with fresh unshed tears Beth gazed up at Garcia as she said,

"This can't be happening Garcia. I can't lose Sam, I'd be completely lost without him…I…I don't want the kids to grow up without their dad."

Listening to Beth's unexpected tearful confession Garcia immediately collapsed by down into her chair, and pulled Beth back into her warm embrace as she chided,

"Don't you think like that Beth Cooper; you are not going to lose Sam, and your kids are not going to grow up without their dad. Everything is going to be ok."

Realizing that everything that Garcia had said was true Beth nodded her head in agreement; not saying a word as Garcia once again rose to her feet. Taking Garcia's offered hands Beth struggled to her feet, accompanied by an intensely sharp pain in her stomach. Hissing in response to the unexpected pain Beth instinctively grasped her stomach. Worried by her friend's surprising action Garcia immediately asked,

"Beth, honey, everything ok?"

Breathing deeply Beth waved her hand around in the air as if fighting off an annoying fly as she replied,

"I'm ok; it seems that the baby doesn't like the news either."

Even though she wasn't a profiler, but instead a normal technical analyst, Garcia had no problem spotting the lie embedded within Beth's responding words. Wounded with even more sadness that Beth felt she needed to lie to her Garcia allowed the hurtful fact to pass. She knew Beth, and how she acted; if something were seriously wrong Garcia knew that Beth would tell her in her own time. She would just have to wait till that time came. With their computer cases, or in Garcia's case with her triple sleeve compacted computer case, slung over their shoulders the two of them headed towards the door; Beth texting Gina that they were heading towards the SUV and on their way…

-CM:SB-

In what seemed like practically no time at all Garcia was pulling the SUV into the hospital's ER parking lot, in what Beth considered record time. Not wanting to waste any more precious time Beth and Garcia proceeded in the direction of the main ER doors as fast as they could; just as they stepped through the ER's automatic sliding doors Beth and Garcia caught sight of Gina waiting for them beside the main check- in desk. Waddling as fast as she could Beth made her way over to her waiting friend with Garcia right by her side.

Coming to stand in front of Gina Beth couldn't help but notice the sadness shining brightly in Gina's eyes as she asked,

"What happened, Gina? H-how did this happen?"

Gina slowly shook her head no, shrugging her shoulders,

"I don't know how it happened Beth, none of us do. It all happened so fast- one minute I was standing with the deputy police officer beside the house, watching the guys walk under the yellow tape to make their way towards us; the next minute I heard an extremely faint popping like noise, and Sam fell to the pavement with blood pouring from his chest. Mick, Prophet, and I pulled our guns out, and scanned the area, but we couldn't see anything. Mick speculates that based on the amount of damage that the bullet did to Sam that the Unsub may have been two houses away from the crime scene, more or less, when he made the shot, and that he used some kind of home-made silencer to hide the gun fire. I figure it's something we can look into…"

Whatever additional words Gina might have wanted to say became frozen in her throat when she noticed the pained expression that covered Beth's face as she clutched her stomach. The worry that already occupied Gina seemed to double in response to the pain-filled expression on Beth's face. Sending a frantic glance to Garcia Gina turned back to Beth and asked,

"Beth, what's wrong?"

For a second time that day Beth waved her hand in front of her, this time vigorously as if she was clearing smoke from the air, as she replied,

"It's nothing, I'm fine. Do you think we can go join Mick and Prophet, wherever they are, so that we aren't blocking the ER's check-in desk?"

Heeding the suspicious and sudden change in topic that Beth had just made Gina didn't say a word, making a mental note to keep a closer eye on Beth, as she nodded her head; before turning on her heels to lead them down the busy hallway to the surgical waiting area.

Like two newborn baby ducklings walking in line behind their mother, Beth and Garcia followed Gina as she weaved her way through the busy hospital halls. After two winding turns onto different halls Gina finally slowed down her pace as they approached the first door on the right side of the small hallway. Stepping through the doorway after Gina Beth and Garcia found themselves in a room with chairs lining all four walls, the surgical waiting room; the room was empty except for Mick, and Prophet. Seeing their female counterparts enter the room the two lonely occupants swiftly rose to their feet. Glancing at both Prophet's and Mick's faces Beth became puzzled when Mick avoided making eye contact with her. Keeping her eyes trained on Mick's eluding gaze Beth, bracing her hand on her lower back, stepped forward as she asked,

"What's going on Mick, why won't you look me in the face?"

His eyes bright, filled to the brim with guilt, Mick turned his head to stare up at Beth. Noticing the uncomfortable stance she was in Mick opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by Prophet, no doubt he had also noted Beth's stance as he interceded,

"Here Beth why don't you sit down, and then we can talk."

Overloaded with fresh anger Beth glanced at Prophet for a moment as she shook her head defiantly as she replied,

"No, I don't want to sit down, I'm fine. What I want is to listen to Mick explain to me why he was trying to avoid looking me in the face."

Knowing better than to argue with Beth when she was angry in her present condition Prophet swiftly stepped down without another word; leaving Beth as she was. From beside their temporarily silenced team mate Mick heaved a heavy sigh as he replied,

"It's my fault that Coop got shot. I'm the ex-sniper on the team; I should have made a more thorough scan of the area. If I had done that then maybe I would have caught the light refracting off the guy's scope; I would have been able to warn Coop, and then we wouldn't be in this mess."

Listening to Mick's guilty reasoning Prophet, unable to contain himself, stepped closer to Mick as he interceded,

"You've got to stop blaming yourself man. You couldn't have known that the Unsub would be scoping out the crime scene."

Wanting to help ease Mick's guilt Beth nodded her head in agreement,

"Prophet's right Mick, none of this was your fault so stop blaming yourself. I don't blame you, or anyone else here for that matter, for what happened…Speaking of what happened, was Sam conscious after he was shot?"

With a hint of a smile on his lips Prophet nodded his head,

"Yeah he was, he said for us not to worry about him too much but to make sure you were ok, and to keep working on the case to find this guy. Same old Coop, even when he has a gunshot wound bleeding in his chest."

The bittersweet relief that Beth felt in response to Prophet's words were unfortunately short lived…


	6. Pain and Confessions

**A/N: Here is the latest chapter. Not much is going on in this chapter per say. But I hope you still like it anyway. Like always, read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 6- Pain and Confessions

Just as fast as the relief filled her body it left, leaving Beth consumed in pain in its place. The pain was searing causing Beth to gasp loudly as she doubled over in pain. Being the closest to Beth at just an arm's length away Prophet, eyes bulging out of his head in panic, grasped her shoulders to support her off balance stance as he asked,

"Beth, what is it? Is it the baby?"

Leaving his previously stationary spot in front of the chairs Mick rushed over to Beth, locking his hand underneath the crook of her elbow to keep her steady as he looked over to Prophet, nodding at the row of vacant chairs, as he said,

"Chair-chair, let's get her into a chair."

Still standing beside Garcia watching Mick and Prophet gently maneuver Beth into a chair Gina's eyes grew larger with realization as she said,

"Oh my God, I should have realized what was happening back in the ER…" Gina turned to Garcia, "Besides her wiggling around in the SUV on the way down here, has Beth been acting differently with you while you two were at the station?"

After just a second of considering Gina's question an identical look of realization covered Garcia's face as she nodded her head,

"Yeah she was. She would move around in her chair a lot, like she couldn't get comfortable, and she would constantly rub circles on her stomach. When I questioned her about all of it she said that the baby was moving around a lot. I should have known that they were early warning contractions."

Having taken the time to stop and listen to what Garcia had said Mick turned back to Beth's pain-tinted face and asked,

"Is that true Beth, have you been experiencing pains similar to this throughout the day? Why didn't you tell us?"

Exhaling a deep shaky breath Beth replied,

"Because they weren't consistent like the contractions in my past two pregnancies were, they were sporadic. I just figured that they were Braxton Hicks contractions and that they would eventually stop…"

Just as Beth said this her body was harassed by another contraction. Gasping in pain Beth grabbed her stomach yet again as she exclaimed,

"OH! This can't be happening, not now!"

The words had barely left Beth's lips when she experienced another different sensation, the feeling of something warm spreading out from between her legs. Without even having to look at or touch the area between her legs where the warmth had spread Beth immediately knew what had happened. Her eyes enlarged to the size of silver fifty cent coins Beth raised her head, looking around at her gathered worried teammates as she said,

"Guys we have another even bigger problem- my water just broke."

Recognizing the seriousness of the situation currently unfolding Prophet calmly but quickly ran from the room in search of a nurse and a wheelchair. Back inside the surgical waiting room fear continued to fill Beth, completely consuming her; frantic, Beth glanced around at Mick, Gina, and Garcia, desperate for some kind of reassurance as she questioned,

"This can't be happening now, why is this happening now? I'm not due for another two and a half weeks."

Detecting the hysterics mixed in with Beth's fear-filled words Mick tried hard not to smile as he cocked his eyebrow and replied,

"Well Beth, this seems to be a normal reoccurrence with your pregnancies seeing that you went into labor with Sarah at thirty-seven and a half weeks, like now and with Wyatt at thirty seven weeks. This baby is no different."

Panic continued to battle inside Beth's head, trying to gain full control, and it was winning. As if completely disregarding Mick's attempt of humorous resolve Beth vigorously shook her head no as she said,

"No, I can't do this…I can't do this without Sam. I don't want to have this baby by myself."

Bearing witness to Beth's sudden emotional confession, as tears of pain streaked down her reddened cheeks, Gina and Garcia acted quickly, inserting themselves in the chair on either side of Beth, each grasping one of her hands. Giving Beth's hand a reassuring squeeze Garcia said,

"You won't be alone Beth honey, Gina and I will be with you the entire time. The three of us will get through this together."

Soothed by Garcia's calm, reassuring words Beth mutely nodded her head in agreement. At that moment Prophet reentered the waiting room with a nurse and a wheelchair following right behind him. Coming over to join the rest of his teammates Prophet knelt down in front of Beth as he said,

"Beth, this is Nurse Sylvia- she's going to take you over to labor and delivery, and help you get settled into a room, ok?"

Having seen the pained expression fill Beth's face as he spoke Prophet instinctively thought that she was disagreeing with what he had done, making him apprehensive over what he had just said. Noticing Prophet's misunderstanding of Beth's facial expression Gina quickly interceded,

"Beth's not disagreeing with your decision Prophet; she's just experiencing another painful contraction. Don't worry man, your actions were admirable. If I were in Beth's shoes I would be very thankful and appreciative of what you've done."

As if Gina had just read her a forgotten line in a play Beth replied,

"I'm not upset over what you did Prophet, I'm just enduring a really horrible contraction at the moment, it's murder…Thank you for getting a nurse and a wheelchair for me; you are always looking out for other people. I appreciate it very much."

Relieved to not have had the wrong intentions after all Prophet gave Beth a small smile; when the contraction officially subsided Prophet and Mick gingerly and carefully helped Beth over to her awaiting wheelchair of a chariot. Stepping over to join their recently seated friend Gina turned to face Mick and Prophet and said,

"Ok guys, call us if you hear anything on Coop's condition, and we'll call you guys if anything happens, baby wise."

Receiving double nods of agreement from both Mick and Prophet the small wheelchair caravan pulled out of the surgical waiting room…


	7. PainFilled Progress

**A/N: Here I am once again with another new chapter. Sorry its taken me so long to update, it took me longer to write it than I thought. Hopefully where I decided to stop was a good enough place. This chapter is officially the longest chapter I have ever written. I hope you like it. Like always, read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 7- Pain-Filled Progress

The abrupt and unscheduled journey through the hospital's windy, maze-like halls required only a few minutes, a complete relief in Beth's mind. As they turned the corner off of the grey colored halls, covered with renowned paintings by Monet, Van Gogh, and other painters, the three female FBI agents found themselves in another entranceway; this one warm and dimly light. As Beth, Gina, and Garcia looked around with intrigue at their new surroundings Nurse Sylvia picked up the wall mounted hospital phone, calling past the metal security locked doors to the Labor and Delivery ward that lay beyond them. With permission given and the doors unlocked Nurse Sylvia guided the three female FBI agents into the safety-enclosed ward.

With guidance from one of the nurses standing beside the main nurses station Nurse Sylvia rolled Beth into a vacant room, with another nurse right behind them. With a final good-bye to Beth, Gina, and Garcia Nurse Sylvia exited the room; in her place was a red-headed nurse with a caring face. Giving Beth a friendly smile the nurse said,

"Hello Beth, Sylvia already gave us your information when she called in on the wall mounted phone outside of the ward. I'm Stephanie, I'm going to be your nurse during your, albeit, unexpected stay here in labor and delivery."

Trying to return the friendly smile but failing to due to another contraction, Beth replied,

"Nice to meet you Stephanie, and you are correct about this being unexpected, I only came here because my husband was shot while working on a case. I was sitting with my other teammates in the surgical waiting room when this all started…Oh I'm sorry, Stephanie, these are two of my teammates Agent Gina LaSalle, and Penelope Garcia."

Extending the friendly smile to both Gina and Garcia Stephanie said,

"It's nice to meet both of you as well. Now before I can get Beth into the bed I must first help her change out of her normal clothes and into a gown. Now if you two will excuse us, I'm going to close this curtain so as to give us some privacy; we'll only be a moment."

Having previously accompanied Beth to the hospital when she was in labor with Sarah, Gina wasn't surprised by the curtain barrier separating her and Garcia from Beth. Placing both Beth's computer case as well as Garcia's multi-computer case on the floor the two blondes seated themselves on the sofa to wait. Just as fast as it had been closed, Stephanie opened the curtain barrier to reveal Beth, dressed in the generic hospital gown, and already settled in the bed. Rising from their seats on the sofa Gina and Garcia joined Beth, standing beside her at the bed. Standing at the end of the bed Stephanie shed the latex gloves from her hands as she reported,

"Well Beth, according to the pelvic exam I just performed on you, you are already dilated four centimeters."

Not expecting to hear this drastic amount of dilation Beth's eyes enlarged with shock; her voice wavering as she questioned,

"Four centimeters, how is that possible?"

Wanting to calm her friend's rebooted nerves Gina grasped Beth's hand, and gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance. Accepting Gina's helping squeeze Beth took a deep calming breath as she replied,

"Can I still get an epidural?"

Unfazed Stephanie nodded her head,

"Yes you can still get an epidural. I'll contact the anesthesiologist and let her know."

That said Stephanie turned and walked out of the room, leaving the three women to themselves. Looking over at Beth's face Gina and Garcia saw that the look of shock was still locked into place. The expression was all the evidence Garcia needed to know that Beth was still fretting over her dilation in her mind. Placing a gentle hand upon Beth's blanket covered thigh Garcia said,

"Beth honey, you have to try and relax, there is nothing to worry about you're only dilated four centimeters. Just think, at least this labor isn't progressing as fast as it did when you delivered Wyatt. Everything is going to be fine, and progress normally. But…um…if you don't mind me asking, how dilated were you when your doctor checked you at your last appointment?"

The shocked expression having dissolved from Beth's face Beth looked calmly at Garcia as she replied,

"I know I shouldn't let myself worry about this Garcia, but it came as a total surprise, I wasn't expecting to already be dilated four centimeters. And to answer your second question, my doctor didn't give me a pelvic exam during my last appointment; she said that she would do it during my next appointment, which I originally scheduled for tomorrow."

Right as the words left Beth's mouth another contraction ripped through her body. Her face already contorted from the onslaught of pain Beth glanced desperately from Gina to Garcia as she breathlessly pleaded,

"Can we please talk about something, the case, anything, just so I can get my mind off of the pain that I'm feeling right now?"

A little confused about what exactly it was that Beth wanted to talk about in the case Gina casually countered,

"What about the case do you want to talk about, anything specific?"

Taking a few deep breaths Beth shrugged her shoulders,

"I don't know, anything; I just want to distract myself from the pain. How about the crime scene- did any of you guys notice anything unusual about it when you all got there before the shooting occurred?"

After taking a moment to consider Beth's question Gina shook her head no as she answered,

"No we didn't notice anything odd, or at least the guys didn't say anything if they did. The crime scene was securely tapped off, and nothing appeared to be disturbed.,," Gina pulled out her cell phone from her pocket, "if we're going to talk about the case then I'm going to call Mick and Prophet so that they can be included with our discussion."

With Beth's unnecessary nod of approval Gina dialed Mick's number, filling him in on their intended activity once he answered. Removing her phone from her ear Gina swiftly pressed a button on the side of the device. Placing her phone on the open available space upon the bed Gina looked to Beth, and Garcia, who had already maneuvered herself back over to the sofa, and her computers, and said,

"Ok guys you both have me, Beth, and Garcia on speaker, ready to get started?"

Through the phone's speaker floated Mick's clean British voice as he replied,

"Yep, and you have both me and Prophet on speaker as well, so let's get going."

Preparing herself mentally and physically for the next contraction that she could already feel approaching, Beth couldn't help but ponder over the confusing aspects of the Unsub's distinct change in victimology. Her confusion must have shown clear as day on her face because Gina asked,

"Beth what is it? You have a look on your face that says that you're having trouble grasping something. What is it that you can't quite understand?"

With her cover so quickly blown Beth heaved a light sigh of surrender as she replied,

"It's the Unsub's change in victimology, it just doesn't make any sense to me. The first three victims he killed were all retired FBI agents in their mid-fifties to their early sixties, as well as having worked in specific departments of the FBI. Then he changes, and shoots Sam, who is still an active agent, and is in his early forties. It just doesn't make any sense."

Floating through the speaker of Gina's phone Prophet asked,

"So what angle are you working towards Beth? That Sam somehow has a connection to our three dead, retired agents?"

Understanding the specifics of Prophet's question, as well as the meaning behind Beth's words Gina answered,

"Beth may be on to something…This Unsub is very meticulous, he chose each of his first three victims for the same specific reasons, so if he chose to shoot Sam as well, then maybe he's connected to the first three victims somehow."

Cold hard silence was all that was heard on Mick's end of the phone; both men were taking a moment to contemplate Gina's words and to reconsider Beth's. Having personally known Sam for such a longer time before joining the team Mick was having a hard time wrapping his head around the proposed connection between Sam and the three dead retired agents. The fact that he and Sam were friends had apparently not mattered since Mick had no memory of Sam ever divulging any information about a past case that involved James Harken, Marshall Goodman, and Maxwell Kyle. That single fact along stung Mick worst of all. Pushing the painful thought from his mind Mick quickly cleared his throat, and asked,

"Is there any way that we can double check the possibility of the theory that you and Beth agreed upon? Was there anything specific in the background checks on each of the guys that Garcia ran that can go with it?"

From over on the sofa with one of her laptops seated firmly on her lap Garcia spoke up,

"When I ran the further background checks on each victim back at the Henrico Police Department I did find something in common with all three of the victims. It would seem that a few years back all three of our victims worked together on a case. Unfortunately I wasn't able to find any more information about what specific case it was because that was when Chief Midston came in and delivered the news to us about Sam…"

Through the phone's speaker, his voice filled with eagerness, Mick asked,

"Is it possible for you to resume that same background search Penelope, only this time factor in cases that included involvement of all three of our victims as well as Sam?"

Her fingers already flying across the computer's keyboard Garcia rolled her eyes dramatically as she replied,

"Of course I can my darling Brit, and the fact that you have to verbally ask such a question wounds me."

Before they could hear a response from Mick a knock sounded at the door. While Beth casually but breathlessly called for the mysterious knocker to come in Gina swiftly picked up her phone, taking it off of speaker before putting it to her ear, and said,

"Sorry guys we're going to have to hang up for a few minutes. It seems that the anesthesiologist is here to give Beth her epidural. Garcia is already working on the modified background check, so we'll call you guys back in a few minutes."

Receiving an affirmative response from Mick Gina ended the call, and returned the phone to her pocket for the time being. Looking back towards the door Gina watched along with Beth and Garcia as a woman with shoulder length blonde hair pushed a medical cart into the room. Bringing the medical cart to a stop near the end of the hospital bed the woman smiled as she said,

"Hello Beth, I'm Dr. Carter, the anesthesiologist. I received a call from Nurse Stephanie that you requested to get an epidural?"

A smile of relief spread across Beth's face, both because the anesthesiologist had arrived, and because the contraction had finally ended, as she replied,

"Oh yes please. An epidural would be wonderful right about now."

Needing no further response Dr. Carter nodded her head,

"Alright then, if you'll just maneuver yourself so that you're sitting on the side of the bed facing the sofa then I can get started."

Eager to receive the much anticipated medication Beth was quick to comply with Dr. Carter's wishes, or at least as fast as she was capable of moving in her current condition. Taking a notice of what was about to happen, Garcia stopped the search that she was in the middle of conducting; placing the laptop on the sofa Garcia rose to her feet to stand beside Gina, who was already standing across from Beth's newly positioned form. Having filled the syringe with the correct amount of medication Dr. Carter placed it on top of the medical cart for the brief time being as she gently separated the open backed section of Beth's hospital gown, exposing the bare skin of Beth's lower back. Preparing herself for the pain that she knew would come; Beth grabbed the pillow from the head of the bed, hugging it to her body resting her chin on it while waiting for what was to come. This was the only part about getting an epidural that Beth despised.

Picking up the syringe once again, lining it up with its intended target Dr. Carter calmly warned,

"Ok Beth, I'm going to insert the needle; you may feel a little sting similar to that of a bee sting. When you feel this I'm going to need you to keep your back still; you can squeeze the pillow that you're holding if it helps you. Are you ready?"

Seeing Beth nod her head Dr. Carter slowly inserted the needle into Beth's skin. Feeling the needle's piercing assault into her back Beth immediately squeezed the pillow, biting back her pain-filled scream as tears ran down her cheeks. The needle's retreat from Beth's back couldn't have come soon enough, even though it only lasted a few seconds, it felt like utter Hell to Beth. Removing her death grip from her now flattened pillow Beth placed it back into its previous spot at the top of the bed. Then with help from Dr. Carter, since the lower part of her body was successfully numbed, Beth returned to her previous position upon the bed.

Sighing in relief at the reduction of pain Beth thanked Dr. Carter for the epidural as she backed out of the room. Then before the door even had time to completely close Nurse Stephanie walked into the room. Catching the relieved expression upon Beth's face the nurse knew that she was enjoying the effects of the epidural. While putting on a pair of latex gloves Nurse Stephanie stopped at the foot of the bed, looking up at Beth as she said,

"Well Beth, even though you just received your epidural I'm going to check your dilation and see if its changed…" Nurse Stephanie turned to Gina, "Can you help me move her legs into position now that she no longer has much motor skills in them?"

Slightly nervous about the task she was just asked to perform Gina nodded her head as she stepped closer to the bed; grabbing Beth's leg and moving it like Nurse Stephanie instructed her. After they had lowered Beth's legs back onto the mattress Nurse Stephanie removed the gloves from her hands as she reported,

"Well Beth, you seem to be progressing along very nicely. As of right now you are currently dilated eight centimeters; won't be much longer now."

Once again shock accumulated on Beth's face in response to the nurse's words. This was only her second pelvic exam and already her dilation had doubled. In regards to Beth's silent response Nurse Stephanie didn't say another word as she too backed out of the room…


	8. Walk Down Cyber Memory Lane

**A/N: Here is the next chapter. I didn't realize it when I was writing it, but this chapter really does have a lot of stuff going on within it. I guess that's why it turned out so long. I just want to thank everyone who has sent me a review for the past chapters, I really appreciate them. Like always, read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 8- Walk Down Cyber Memory Lane

A fresh current of shock-filled silence hung in the air, consuming every inch of Beth's hospital room. Caught off guard by the news both Gina and Garcia continued to stare at Beth as they digested what they had just heard. Even though the shocked expression on Beth's face had softened considerably, she was still an open book for anyone to read. Fear from her labor's rapid progression radiated off of Beth's face, shining in an equal brightness from her eyes. Hating to see her friend like this Gina grasped Beth's hand and gave it a gentle reassuring squeeze. As if Gina had transferred some of her strength into her Beth stirred from her silent trance; looking from Gina to Garcia Beth gave them a small smile as she said,

"I'm doing better now guys, really. I just wasn't expecting to hear that I'm already dilated eight centimeters. I know that each delivery is different, but I still can't believe that I'm progressing so quickly…"

Nodding her head in complete understanding Gina replied,

'We understand Beth, you have every right to react the way that you did; the news caught us off guard as well. So do you think you're ready to continue talking about the case?"

Needing only a moment to consider Gina's final question Beth nodded her head. Catching Beth's silent response Garcia returned to the sofa and retrieved her laptop, resuming the background check while Gina retrieved her cell phone. After first putting the phone on speaker Gina dialed Mick's number for a second time, where Mick answered after two rings. Smiling at the sound of her husband's voice Gina replied,

"Hey boys, we're all back. Sorry it took so long, but Beth received an unexpected surprise from the nurse."

Through the phone's speaker, his voice a mixture of calm and concern, Mick replied,

"Quite alright Love, but everything is ok, right?"

Before Gina could reply Beth spoke,

"Yes Mick everything is fine. The nurse just checked my dilation and found that I'm already dilated eight centimeters. Needless to say I was shocked by the news…So are we going to just chit-chat or are we going to continue discussing the case?"

Already fully aware that Beth didn't want to continue talking about her current condition both Mick and Prophet were in agreement as Prophet answered,

"Yes Beth don't worry, we'll stop the chit-chat so that we can continue talking about the case. Speaking of which, has Garcia made any progress on the background check?"

Using Prophet's question as her own personal introduction, from her seat on the sofa, Garcia answered,

"As a matter of fact my dear Prophet, I have actually just made a breakthrough in my search. According to the information I just uncovered it would seem that our first three victims did indeed work together, along with Sam, on a case in the past…"

Intrigued and wanting to learn more about the past interlocked case Gina enquired,

"So what are the specifics of the case that they all worked on together?"

Looking down at the open file upon her computer screen Garcia replied,

"Twelve years ago, our three victims and Sam tracked down and arrested one Jarrod Becker. Becker had been using bombs to attack specific high ranking officials of Congress. The case was considered a matter of national security."

Curious about what had happened to Becker after he had been apprehended Beth asked,

"What happened to Becker after he was arrested?"

Taking a moment to type on a few keys Garcia answered,

"According to the report, Becker was sentenced to twenty consecutive life sentences in prison, on life sentence for each person he killed…Uh…Oh my, it says here that he died in prison three years ago from Pancreatic Cancer."

Her face scrunched up in confusion Gina asked,

"So if the original Unsub is dead, then who is doing the attacks this time?"

Through the cell phone Mick suggested,

"Maybe it's a family member of Becker's whose doing all of this for revenge or some sort of closure for Jarrod?"

Before any of the girls could open their mouths to respond Prophet asked,

"Do we know if Becker has any family members here in Richmond, P?"

While Garcia frantically searched for the answers of Prophet's question Beth gave a howl of pain from a painful contraction. It seemed that the epidural couldn't help with all of the pain. Wanting to help Beth deal with the pain Gina gave Beth her hand to squeeze while reassuring both Mick's and Prophet's panicked voices coming through her phone's speaker that everything was fine. Both boys' concerns dealt with Garcia stopped typing on her keyboard, raising her head as she said,

"To answer your question Prophet, Jarrod Becker did have a family, and they all still live in Richmond today. More specifically, he had a wife and two children, Jonah, and Maggie. Jonah was thirteen at the time of his father's arrest and would be twenty-five now. Maggie was just four at the time of her father's arrest, and would be sixteen now. Becker's wife, Andrea divorced him six months before the killings began, but she never remarried."

Exhaling deeply through her mouth as her last contraction extinguished Beth breathlessly said,

"Jerrod Becker's son is within the age range of a military trained sniper; as well as within the age range that we profiled earlier. What kind of background does he have Penelope?"

With a few additional clicks on her keyboard Garcia replied,

"Jonah Becker- enlisted in the military at eighteen, right out of high school where he was trained to be an Army Special Forces sniper. Also, according to his military records, Jonah just returned home on medical leave from his current tour in Iraq."

At that moment through the phone's speaker Mick countered,

"Medical leave, was he injured, Penelope?"

Even though she knew that Mick couldn't see her Garcia nodded her head as she answered,

"Yes, he was wounded by shrapnel to the knee by a suicide bomb. Due to the extent of his injuries from the blast, along with extreme PTSD, the army had no other choice but to send him home."

Trying very hard not to cringe as Beth squeezed the life out of her hand as she battled against yet another contraction Gina speculated,

"It's possible that the suicide bombing that Jonah Becker was injured in over in Iraq could be our stressor. The bombing could have made his relive all the pain and anger that he experienced as a teenager dealing with his dad's investigation and arrest…"

As soon as Gina finished saying this, through the phone's speaker Mick said,

"I think that Gina's right, based on Jonah's military history, he is definitely our guy. Prophet and I will contact Chief Midston and give him a heads up…" A brief silent pause followed Mick's words, "ladies we have to go; Sam's doctor has just walked into the room. One of us will let you all know what he says as soon as we can, I promise."

Without waiting for any kind of response Mick ended the call, and the line went dead. Ending the call on her phone as well and returning it once again to her jean pocket Gina gave Beth a reassuring smile as she said,

"Try not to worry about Sam Beth; he's going to be perfectly fine. Just try and focus on your breathing at the moment. We'll hear from one of the guys in a few minutes, like Mick promised."

Even though she nodded her head in agreement, trying hard to focus on her breathing like Gina had suggested, Beth couldn't help but think about Sam, and the outcome of his surgery.

-CM: SB-

Snapping his cell phone shut, holding it securely in his hand, Mick followed Prophet's line of sight; training his sniper sharp eyes on the male doctor dressed in wrinkled surgical scrubs as he made his way into the room. Neither of their eyes moved away from the approaching doctor as both Mick and Prophet rose simultaneously from their seats. Coming to a stop before the only two men in the waiting room the doctor nodded as he asked,

"Are the two of you part of the family of Samuel Cooper?"

Catching the faint uncertainty in the doctor's words both Mick and Prophet nodded their heads as Mick replied,

"Yes sir, we are."

Nodding his head, getting straight down to business the doctor said,

"Well, we were able to remove the bullet that was lodged in Mr. Cooper's mid chest region. He was very lucky, if the bullet had hit him just four centimeters to the right, it would have pierced his heart. He did very well during the surgery, and is currently being moved to recovery room 151, if you'd like to go see him. He is however still sedated so he'll be out of it for a while."

Relieved by the news that they were given both Mick and Prophet released a breath that neither of them knew that they had been holding. Filled with gratitude for everything that the doctor had done for Sam both men gave him their thanks as he exited the room. Although both Mick and Prophet were eager to go check on their recovering boss and friend, they both knew that they had responsibilities to fulfill first. Turning to his southern friend and teammate Mick said,

"How about we both take care of our specific responsibilities and then we can go check on Sam. Why don't you call Chief Midston and give him the heads up, tell him to round up a few of his men and meet us here at the hospital. There's a possibility that Jonah Becker may try to come here to finish the job, and kill Sam; I know that I didn't mention this while we were on the phone with the girls, but I didn't want to put any more stress on Beth. We can station Chief Midston's men around the hospital to keep an eye out for Jonah Becker. While you're doing that I'll text Gina and tell her what the doctor said; I'll also text Garcia and have her secretly look up what car Jonah Becker drives. The more information we can give Chief Midston and his men, the faster we'll be able to locate and catch him…"

Agreeing whole-heartedly with what Mick had suggested Prophet quickly pulled his cell phone from his jean pocket. Dialing the number of Chief Midston's private line in his office. While standing beside Prophet, Mick's fingers were typing away crazily on his cell phone's keypad as he texted the news to Gina before then secretly texting Garcia. After sending both text messages, not waiting for Garcia's reply Mick turned to look at Prophet. Holding his own phone in his hand as well Prophet gave a confirming nod as he said,

"Chief Midston is gathering some of his men right now, and then they are going to come here and meet up with us down in the main lobby before dispersing to each of their lookout positions."

Knowing that it would mean that it would be a little longer still before they could go check on Sam Mick nodded his head in agreement. Just as he did this Mick's phone emitted a loud beep; without having to look down at the screen Mick knew what had caused his phone to beep. Flipping the device open Mick's eyes were greeted by a new, unopened message from Garcia, just as he knew it would be. Opening the message, quickly reading over its content Mick looked back over to Prophet and said,

"Garcia looked deeper into Jonah Becker's records and was able to find out what kind of car he drives. His records say that he drives a white, beat up two- door 1999 Honda Accord."

In light of the newly uncovered additional information Prophet gave a single curt nod of his head as he replied,

"That particular piece of information will definitely help us, as well as Chief Midston and his men a lot. But what would help all of us even more would be if P had found out the license plate number of Jonah Becker's car."

At the mention of a license plate number Mick swiftly help up his hand, pausing Prophet's next words. Reopening his phone Mick quickly rescanned through Garcia's informative text message. Finding the small, but still specific piece of information that he had mistakenly skipped over during his first scanning Mick reported,

"Sorry Mate, my bad. Garcia was able to give us the license plate number of Jonah Becker's car, but because she didn't place it at the beginning of the message after the car's description I ended up reading right over it the first time I read it."

Catching the faint yet still unmistakable hint of guilt beginning to filter into Mick's words once again Prophet knew that he had to stomp on it and squash it immediately before it had time to grow. Raising his hand just like Mick had done to him a moment ago Prophet interceded,

"Man, I can already start to hear the guilt swimming in your words. Don't do this to yourself again; so you missed the license plate number the first time you read through Garcia's text message, it's no big deal. Anyone, myself included, could have made the same mistake…" Prophet could already see the guilt leaving Mick's dark eyes, "Now that we have this additional and useful piece of information, let's go down and fill Chief Midston and his men on what we know."

Keeping his mouth clamped shut, knowing that it was useless to apologize for his brief feelings of guilt, Mick simply nodded his head before following Prophet out of the waiting room. Their journey through the hospital halls to the main lobby was made in silence. Neither Mick nor Prophet wanted to speak of the discussion that had just taken place. Rounding their current hallway's final bend the two men found themselves in the back corner of the main lobby. On the other side of the spacious area and its sunlight reflected floors Mick and Prophet saw Chief Midston and his men.

Not wanting to waste anymore time Mick and Prophet, at al quick stridden pace, made their way across the floor. Joining Chief Midston and his group of officers the two FBI agents exchanged nods of greeting with Chief Midston while agreeing nonverbally to move over to a side pocket out of the middle of the lobby floor. Once they had found a private corner of the lobby Chief Midston got right down to business, and said,

"So Agent Rawson and Agent Simms, I brought with me some of my men, like you instructed. Now do either of you have any new information that can help us spot Jonah Becker any faster?"

Concealing their surprise over Chief Midston's apparent psychic ability Prophet remained quiet as Mick simply nodded his head and replied,

"Yes sir we do actually have some new information that could help you and your men a whole lot. While Agent Simms was speaking with you on his phone I spoke with our technical analyst and had her look up Jonah Becker's vehicle history. She was able to discover that he drives a white, two-door 1999 Honda Accord with the license plate XRH-3060. Hopefully this new information will aid you greatly."

Giving his head an appreciative nod of his head Chief Midston said,

"You are correct Agent Rawson; this new information will indeed help us greatly. Now because of the specific number of officers that you've asked me to bring with me, is there any specific group arrangement you'd like for us to split up into?"

Taking hold of Chief Midston's question this time Prophet replied,

"Actually Chief Midston we do already have a specific plan of action in mind. As you probably already know, the hospital has a minimum of four entrances that Jonah Becker could get in through- the main lobby, the ER, the Woman's Pavilion, and the kitchen's service entrance. We would like you and your men to split up into groups of two and guard each of the four entrances. The two remaining officers we would like to come with us and stand guard in front of Agent Cooper's recovery room as added precaution. If and or when anyone sees Jonah Becker approaching the hospital they will radio everyone else of their specific position, and Becker's intended direction so that the rest of us can join them. Do you Chief Midston, or any of your men have a problem with any of this?"

After taking a moment to ponder silently Chief Midston as well as all of his gathered officers shook their heads; all of them in complete agreement of the intended plan of action. Continuing on forward with the intended plan Chief Midston swiftly turned around and started separating his men up into the four specific guard groups. With their intended guard stations assigned the mass of Henrico County police officers dispersed, each group headed for their assigned entrance. Waving at the two remaining officers to come with them Prophet and Mick finally started to make their way to Sam's recovery room, both to check on and protect their wounded leader.


	9. A Man In Custody

**A/N: Well here you go, another new chapter to add to the ever growing story. Sorry it took me so long to update, but this story took me longer to write than I had expected. It kind of developed a life of its own. I had originally planned for this chapter to be when Beth gave birth, but I ended up having to choose to break the chapter up into two parts since the second part of the chapter dealing with the capture of the Unsub was longer than expected. Anyway, the birth of Sam and Beth's baby will continue and conclude in the next chapter, I promise. Now onto this new chapter, like always read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 9- A Man In Custody

Back over in Labor and Delivery, within the confines of her hospital room, completely unaware of the additional police security outside of the wards' main doors, Beth lay on her bed squeezing Gina's hand once again as she breathed laboriously against the pains of a brutal contraction. In just a short period of time the contractions and their attacks of pain had changed their tactics considerably, and were now taking place every minute and a half to two minutes. When the contraction finally subsided Beth heaved a sigh of relief as she released the death grip she held on Gina's hand. Even though she knew that Beth didn't mean to inflict pain on her while she was squeezing her hand through the pain, Gina couldn't help but be grateful when her hand was finally set free. While trying to rub the somewhat throbbing pain out of her hand the unmistakable sound of the door opening and closing caught Gina's attention; turning all three of their heads in the direction of the door they were greeted by the returning sight of Nurse Stephanie. Smiling the woman walked over to Beth, and said,

"Alright Beth, I'm fairly certain that you already know the reason for why I'm here; I'm going to have your friend here help me position your legs again so That I can check your dilation, ok?" Nurse Stephanie notices the pained look once again covering Beth's face, "Are you having another contraction now?"

Biting her tongue so that she couldn't give the smart ass remark she wanted so badly to say Beth mutely nodded her head. Looking to be unaffected by this piece of news whatsoever Nurse Stephanie replied,

"Alright, well just try and relax, and deal with the pain while I check your dilation."

Totally pissed at the nurse's suggestion, unable to stop herself Beth breathlessly hissed,

"Try and relax? How about you try and relax while it feels like someone is repeatedly stabbing you in your lower abdomen with a knife."

Holding one of Beth's legs in the new position Gina stared utterly stunned at Beth; she never expected the petite brunette to literally bite the nurse's head off like she had just done. Turning back to the verbally victimized nurse Gina found her unaffected once again by Beth's words as she conducted her examination. Her face was neutral as if nothing had been said Nurse Stephanie returned her gaze to Beth and reported,

"I completely understand the reason for why you just snapped at me Beth, as well as the amount of pain that you are currently in. Fortunately, you won't have to put up with these contractions for much longer, you are now dilated nine and a half centimeters. Hopefully you should be able to start pushing in about half an hour's time. Now I've already talked with your personal OBGYN, and she has given me a name of a doctor that is a member of her practice and is a good friend of hers who actually works here at the hospital; her name is Dr. Bloom, and I'm about to go call her and fill her in on your current status and situation. I'll be back in a little while to check your status one more time, in the mean time try and relax between the contractions."

Still battling the contraction's excruciating pain Beth wanted nothing but to tell the woman exactly what she thought at the moment, despite her mind being clouded by the pain. Even though Nurse Stephanie had said what she said to help Beth feel better, it didn't do anything for her. Her words of choice, already balanced at the ready on the tip of her tongue Beth opened her mouth to allow them to fly, but before she could utter a single word Garcia placed a cautionary hand on her shoulder as she warned,

"Beth, I'm fairly certain that I know what you are about to say, or at least something along those lines. Trust me when I say that it is not worth it for you to verbalize them; they will not help you in any way, only bring you more trouble. So what I need for you to do for me is to swallow the words that are on the tip of your tongue, and take a few calming breaths. Come on Beth honey, do it for me and Gina, please."

Choosing to comply with Garcia's pleading request Beth didn't utter a single word, instead she glared at Nurse Stephanie, shooting her with piercing and deadly daggers with her gaze. As if experiencing the piercing penetration from Beth's glaring eyes herself, Nurse Stephanie made a hasty retreat from the room. Amazingly, just as the door closed behind Nurse Stephanie the excruciating pains of Beth's contraction came to a close. Still standing beside the hospital bed, watching Beth sag deeper into the stiff mattress in an attempt to relax, Garcia let loose the laugh that she had tried and failed to contain. Seeing the perplexed expression beginning to fill the crevices of Beth's face Garcia acted quickly, and said,

"Oh my dear Beth what you just did was pure entertainment. I am most certain that you just scared the shit out of Nurse Stephanie with the look that you gave her. She practically ran out of here like a dog with its tail between its legs. I have never seen such a response like that from the piercing daggers death glare before."

Pleased by Garcia's response to her impressionable glare a proud smile spread across Beth's face. It was nice to know that even while she was currently in her pained state of mind that she could still make specific impressions on certain people. Enjoying the less painful state of mind that she was in at the moment Beth continued to smile as she commented,

"Yeah well that annoying woman really deserved it. I swear if I had had my gun while she was in here just now I probably would have threatened to shoot her. How does she expect me to relax when I'm experiencing pain like this?" At that moment as if to help emphasize the words she had just spoken Beth was hit by another contraction, causing her to cringe, "OH! I swear, if Sam were here right now as well, I'd probably be threatening to shoot him too for doing this to me."

A sense of déjà vu fell over the two blondes, for they had heard similar words escape the brunette's lips the few years prior whilst she was in labor with Wyatt. Wearing the same understanding smile upon her face as Garcia Gina continued to gaze down at Beth's pain-filled face, gingerly placing her hand upon Beth's arm as she said,

"Beth, like Garcia and I told you back when you were in labor with Wyatt- you can't shoot Sam for getting you pregnant. You know just as well as I do that it takes two to tango. Besides, Sam is already nursing a gunshot wound of his own; he doesn't need a second one to deal with."

Already fully aware of the truth within Gina's words Beth heaved a light, dramatic sigh as she replied,

"I know, I know, but a girl can at least wish to inflict pain on the person who got her into this particular predicament…" Along with the pained expression on her face Beth's eyes enlarged to twice their normal size, "Oh God, as much as I'd hate to see that woman's annoying face again so soon, this is definitely something that requires her assistance. Gina, please go get Nurse Stephanie, and tell her that I'm starting to feel the need to push."

The note of desperation in Beth's voice having been heard crystal clear Gina sprinted from the room in search of Nurse Stephanie. Spotting the requested female standing behind the nurse's station Gina quickly altered her intended direction, and made a B-line straight for the particular station. Most likely having heard the sound of her fast approach Nurse Stephanie raised her head to stare at Gina. Not even giving the woman a second to speak Gina beat her to it, and said,

"I need you to come with me to Beth Cooper's room, she sent me out here to get you. She says that she's starting to feel the need to push."

Upon hearing this particular piece of information the specified nurse started into action. Without speaking a word Nurse Stephanie side stepped around Gina and began to hastily make her way to Beth's room with Gina directly on her tail. Bombarding through the closed door the nurse and Gina rushed into the room. There right before the nurse's eyes was the evidence that she sought to prove the truth of Gina's words- Beth breathing rapidly with a look of hard determination covering her face as she held back the urge to push. Just by looking at the particular expression on Beth's face, as well as from her own personal experience, Gina knew that the task wasn't the easiest thing to do.

As Gina raced back to Beth's side Nurse Stephanie, after quickly applying a fresh pair of latex gloves to her hands, dove them beneath the bed's white sheet to check Beth's dilation once again. Retracting her hands after just a moment's examination Nurse Stephanie had a look of confirmation on her face; holding up her hand to signal the three women to hold on for a moment, the nurse retreated from the room without saying a single word. After just two lonely moments of time had passed, not even long enough to allow Beth to create a comment, Nurse Stephanie returned. With a quick glance over to Beth Nurse Stephanie headed straight over to the double wooden door closet, extracting multiple packs of paper sheets from its shelves before turning to face the pained brunette and said,

"I just made a quick phone call to Dr. Bloom; as of this moment she is currently up on the fourth floor waiting for an elevator to ride to get down here to you. She said that she'd be here in about five minutes, so you just have to hold on a little longer. In the mean time I'm going to work on getting you and the room set up so that once Dr. Bloom gets here we can get right into the delivery."

Her eyes still enlarged from moments ago Beth loudly exclaimed,

"What! Five minutes? I can't resist the urge that long, I have to push now!"

Overrun by her emotions, tears slid down Beth's face from her bright, glistening eyes. Flinging her head back against the pillow a whimper of pain escaped Beth's lips. Turning her brightened eyes over to Gina Beth pleaded,

"Make it stop Gina, please make it stop. I just want this nightmare to end."

Knowing that it was most likely the stress of everything that had happened that was making Beth this emotional Gina gave Beth's hand a reassuring squeeze as she replied,

"SHH SHH, its ok Beth, its ok. Dr. Bloom will be here in just a few short minutes; then this will all be over soon, and then you'll finally be able to hold your baby boy or girl in your arms."

Right at that moment, from the doorway a female voice replied,

"I couldn't have said it better myself…"

From the doorway, in walked Dr. Bloom; a woman with a friendly appearance and her black hair pulled back into a bun. Baring her arms of her white medical coat, looking at Beth's tear stained face as she seated herself upon the stool at the end of the bed Dr. Bloom said,

"Hello Beth, as you may have already guessed, I'm Dr. Bloom. I'm an associate as well as a close friend of your OBGYN Dr. Towers. Now, I received a rather urgent call from a nurse a few minutes ago saying that you were starting to feel the urge to push?"

Beth nodded her head vigorously,

"Yes I am but I don't know how much longer I can resist the urge."

Dr. Bloom nodded her head, looking to Gina and Garcia as she said,

"Well then, if you two could assist me by keeping Beth's legs separated and bent as close to her chest as you can so that we may get this show on the road?"

Without a single question or comment Gina and Garcia did as Dr. Bloom had asked as fast as they could. Her legs in position and covered with the blue paper sheet Beth appeared ready to proceed. Giving her head an approving nod Dr. Bloom said,

"Alright Beth, let's get started, give me the biggest push that you can give."

Sucking in a deep breath of air Beth did as she was told…

-CM: SB-

-At the same time-

Over on the other side of the hospital Mick and Prophet, along with two of Chief Midston's officers, continued to stand guard outside Sam's room. Both Mick and Prophet had already gone into the room to check on their friend, finding him still out cold from the anesthesia. Trying to think of anything to keep their minds off of Beth and her current task at hand both agents' thoughts were interrupted by the loud crackling of one of the officers' walkie-talkies. Stopping in both their mental and physical tracks the two FBI agents and both police officers listened as a voice said,

"We've spotted Jonah Becker; he just parked his car in the hospital's main parking lot, and is now making his way over to the main lobby entrance."

Exchanging glances with each other Mick and Prophet moved from their stationary positions; turning to the two other officers at the door Prophet said,

"The two of us will go check it out, the two of you stay here in case its some kind of trick that Becker is trying to pull."

Nodding their heads in understanding the two uniformed officers remained at their assigned post while Mick and Prophet ran as fast as they could down the hall. Time must have been working in their favor, because in a matter of just a few minutes the two FBI agents found themselves approaching the information desk in the main lobby. Without breaking their fast-paced strides they continued on their path to join the growing congregation of officers. Their guns already drawn, hanging down by their sides, the two men made their way over to where Chief Midston stood, his eyes gazing out the glass entrance way. Exchanging nods of greeting Mick asked,

"Chief Midston, has there been any visual confirmation made on Jonah Becker, and whether he's armed?"

His eyes never wavering from their current gaze Chief Midston nodded,

"Yes there has Agent Rawson. Just a moment ago one of my men used a pair of binoculars and was able to locate Becker; he's currently making his way across the parking lot, headed in this direction for certain. From what my man could tell by looking through his binoculars, it would seem that Becker is indeed armed, but with what kind of weapon we cannot say until he gets closer to the building."

Knowing that it was of dire importance that they find out what weapon Becker was carrying now, instead of waiting for when he made a closer approach Mick quickly scanned the group of gathered officers. Finding the officer who possessed the mentioned binoculars Mick walked over to him and asked,

"Hey man, do you mind if I borrow your binoculars for a moment?"

Finding no reason to object the officer handed the specified piece of equipment over to Mick. Lifting the binoculars up to his sniper trained eyes Mick looked through the device that was so similar to his own sniper scope; finding Becker in no time at all. Just by watching the way that the man walked Mick could already deduce the type of weapon that he was carrying. Returning the binoculars to the officer Mick turned around to face Chief Midston and reported,

"Jonah Becker is carrying a standard nine- millimeter handgun beneath his open flannel shirt. Based on the unusual way that he is walking, he most likely has a silencer attached to the gun's barrel…"

Seeing the slight uncertainty on Chief Midston's face Mick swiftly added,

"I was a sniper for the British Special Forces back home; I know my guns."

Appearing to finally believe Mick's words Chief Midston nodded his head. Looking expectantly from Mick to Prophet Chief Midston shrugged his shoulder,

"So what's our next move? We now know that he's armed, we can't let him get inside the hospital with that firearm. Do we wait for him to get a little closer and then ambush him all at once? What?"

Shaking his head in answer to both of Chief Midston's suggestions Prophet replied,

"I agree with what you just said Chief Midston, we can't allow Becker to walk into the building while he's carrying that weapon, but neither of your suggested plans of action should be executed either. If we take the time to allow him to get a little closer to us we risk the chance that we can shoot innocent people here in the lobby if he tries to shoot at us. As for the second suggestion, we shouldn't ambush him all together when the time comes; if we do that all we will do is frighten him, which will most likely cause him to open fire, and cause even more casualties, which we don't need. The best thing that you can do is to let Mick and I go out there first to cut him off, and try to talk him into lowering his weapon. If we're able to achieve that then you and your men can come out and apprehend him accordingly."

After taking everything that Prophet had said into strict consideration Chief Midston nodded his head once again,

"Alright Agent Simms, we'll use your suggested plan of action. My men and I will remain back here behind the main sliding doors within the lobby. Both of you be careful out there with him."

Nodding their heads in agreement Mick and Prophet headed towards the outer sliding glass doors, their guns already cocked and loaded. Stepping out into the cool March air, keeping their guns out of sight, Prophet and Mick positioned themselves to lay in wait for Jonah Becker. Then, only a few minutes later their patients paid off as their intended prey rounded the corner onto the entrance's curved sidewalk. In a blink of an eye both Mick and Prophet raised their guns, aiming them directly at Jonah Becker's approaching form as Prophet announced,

"Jonah Becker, FBI, drop your weapon now!"

Caught off guard by the unexpected obstacle before him Jonah Becker froze in the middle of his tracks, his gun remaining hidden beneath his flannel shirt, as he replied,

"No, I have to do this, it's the only way."

Keeping his gun steady still aimed at Jonah Becker, Mick replied,

"Drop the gun Jonah or we will shoot. You have nowhere else to go; the hospital is swimming with local cops waiting to take you into Police custody."

Unsure whether to believe Mick's words Becker swept his eyes over to the glass entryway, through which he had a clear view of Chief Midston and his men. Seeing the truth in Mick's words for himself Becker pulled the gun out from beneath his flannel shirt, dropping it to the pavement with a loud clatter. Witnessing Becker's notable act of surrender Chief Midston and his men flooded out from the hospital, cuffing Becker right off the back. To see Jonah Becker finally in police custody Mick and Prophet heaved identical sighs of relief- Sam's little nightmare was officially over. With nothing else left for either of them to do both Mick and Prophet turned back towards the main lobby, both intending to return to their friend's recovery room to keep watch over him…


	10. Little Angel

**A/N: Here is the newest chapter; sorry it took me a little while to get it posted. Like so many of my past chapters in this story, I had a plan for it, but the chapter just started to write itself. I actually think that it turned out better than how I originally planned it. I hope you all think so too. Like always, read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 10- Little Angel

As time closely approached the hour and a half mark since she had first begun the physical portion of the delivery Beth collapsed back against her pillows, her hair and forehead drenched with sweat. Her chest heaving at a rapid pace Beth worked to refill her lungs with much needed air. Having positioned herself on Beth's left side just before she started pushing Garcia gave Beth's hand an encouraging squeeze as she said,

"Come on sweetie, don't stop now, you're doing so great, keeping going."

Her mind and body already in the process of being consumed with exhaustion Beth slowly shook her head,

"I can't, I'm too tired to push anymore."

Despite the true extent of Beth's exhaustion already evident in Beth's words, Dr. Bloom said,

"Beth I know that you are tired but you have to keep going. Believe it or not the baby's head is nearly out; all you need to do is give me one more big push and it will finally be out. Come on one more big push."

Her face consumed with exhaustion induced exasperation Beth quickly countered,

"One more big push, that's exactly what you said a few minutes ago?"

Taking Beth's partially accusatory words in stride Dr. Bloom simply nodded her head,

"I know I did Beth, and I apologize for making you believe that this would all be over at that time. However, this time I am telling you the truth. By you giving me one last big push the baby's head will finally be delivered and you will be one giant step closer to finishing the delivery, and be able to hold your baby in your arms."

As if Dr. Bloom's words had renewed her strength Beth repositioned herself before resuming her physically exhausting actions. Down at the end of the bed, greatly impressed by Beth's renewed vigor Dr. Bloom energetically encouraged,

"Good Beth good; the baby's head is now completely out. Keep pushing Beth, only less forcefully, ok? With the help of your gentle pushing the rest of the baby will deliver itself much faster, I promise."

Overwhelmed by the need to get the delivery over and done with and completely out of the way Beth willingly complied with Dr. Bloom's wishes. Then after just a short amount of time the rest of the baby's body was delivered as well. Her job complete Beth collapsed back into her pillow once again as she strained to hear what was going on. A fresh sense of joy filled Beth as from the end of the bed she caught the faint whimper of an upset baby overlapped by the sound of a suction ball being used as Dr. Bloom cleared the baby's airways. As soon as the suction was completed the air was filled with the sound of the newborn's loud cries.

Hearing the wondrous sound tears of immense joy slid down Beth's cheeks. Looking up at the third time new mother Dr. Bloom lifted the crying newborn up for Beth, and all to see as she said,

"Congratulations Beth, you have a healthy, beautiful baby girl."

Beholding the magnificent sight of her newborn daughter Beth could no longer contain her emotions as even more tears cascaded down her already red cheeks. After quickly severing the umbilical cord Dr. Bloom handed the baby over to Nurse Stephanie and her towel covered arms. Her eyes as sharp as a hawk's eyes Beth watched Nurse Stephanie as she took her baby girl over to the warming station. Still seated on her stool at the end of the bed Dr. Bloom regained Beth's attention as she said,

"Alright Beth, we still have a little bit of work to do, we still need to deliver the placenta. Now, I'm going to tug on the umbilical cord so you may feel a little discomfort, but besides that just try and relax. If you feel that you need to push then please do so, but if not just lie back and allow me to do all the work."

A little discouraged that they still had some work to do Beth let it pass over her, and tried to relax as Dr. Bloom had asked. Thankfully for Beth Dr. Bloom didn't require any of her assistance; the placenta slid effortlessly down Beth's birth canal and was delivered without any problems. Her attention now officially free to do as she pleased Beth couldn't help but be curious about what was going on with her daughter. Unable to get a clear view of what was going on over at the warming table Beth gave a hopeful glance over to Gina and asked,

"Gina, can you tell what they're doing over there? I can't see anything."

Placing a reassuring hand on Beth's shoulder Gina glanced over at the warming table to try and see what she could see. Finding out that everything over at the warming table was as it should be Gina returned her gaze to Beth and smiled as she said,

"Everything is fine over there Beth don't worry. As soon as they've cleaned her and wrapped her up tight they'll bring her over here. You know that."

Unable to contain her eagerness to meet her newborn baby girl Beth heaved a soft sigh, allowing her hands to fall into her lap as if in surrender as she replied,

"I know it just feels as if is taking them forever over there. I don't remember it taking this long after Sarah was born."

With a smirk pulling at her lips Garcia interceded,

"Oh sweetie I know exactly what your little problem is- you're overly anxious to meet and hold your baby girl…God, I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that we have another girl in our little family. At this rate the guys are going to have a hard time catching up with us." Garcia looked over to Gina, "Let's just hope my fair Gina that when you and Mick decide to expand your family a little more that you have another girl. Not that there's anything wrong with little boys of course, but we can't let the guys take away our new rein."

A sweet realization gently dropped down over Beth and Gina, as of now they outnumbered the boys by two. Faces bright with sheer glee at the simple yet genuine fact Beth and Gina erupted with triumphant giggles; neither of them had ever thought that this could happen. It seemed that Garcia's well played, triumph-filled words had actually been enough to distract Beth from the slow progress over at the warming station, for at that moment Nurse Stephanie walked over to the bed with Beth's little girl, tightly bundled in a pink and blue stripped blanket, cradled in her arms. With her own soft smile upon her face Nurse Stephanie gently placed the bundled baby into Beth's eagerly awaiting arms.

Cradling her daughter's bundled form in her arms Beth couldn't help but smile. Her newest little bundle of joy was absolutely adorable with the same head of curly black hair as her older brother and sister, and her dark blue eyes, which Beth already knew would change into deep or warm chocolate brown. On either side of her Beth could hear both Gina and Garcia awing and cooing at the bundle in her arms. Emitting a soft squeal in apparent delight Garcia said,

"Oh my God Beth she is absolutely precious."

Beaming with pride Beth didn't say anything in response as, from on her other side, Gina added,

"She is a little angel, as well as a spitting image of Sarah when she was born…So do you and Sam already have a name picked out for her?"

Concealing her pain from the fact that Sam wasn't able to be there with her Beth continued to smile as she nodded her head,

"Yes we do, we decided that if the baby happened to be a girl that we'd name her Alexis Marie Cooper, and that's still what it's going to be…"

As the three female FBI agents gazed down at the newly named newborn Nurse Stephanie, having heard Beth reveal the baby's name, quickly recorded it on the baby's records. Gently stroking Alexis's caramel colored cheek Garcia's smile grew a little bigger as she said,

"Alexis Marie Cooper, such a beautiful name for a beautiful little angel."

Agreeing completely with Garcia's words Beth nodded her head once again,

"Yes she is, and I can't wait for Sam and the rest of the guys to meet her."

At the mention of the three missing men a sudden thought popped into Gina's head. Breaking her gaze away from Alexis Gina quickly scanned the room for Dr. Bloom. Spotting the doctor beginning to make her way towards the door Gina jumped into action. Making her way over to where Dr. Bloom was currently positioned Gina gave the woman a friendly smile as she said,

"Thank you Dr. Bloom for agreeing to help out Beth with her delivery; I just have one question to ask you before you leave. Beth's husband has just recently come out of surgery from a gunshot wound; is there any way that the two of them could be roomed together so that neither of them have to apart from one another anymore, as well as so Sam can finally meet his daughter in person?"

Remaining silent for a moment to ponder over the extensiveness of Gina's question Dr. Bloom casually shrugged her shoulders as she answered,

"I don't see why the two of them can't share a room; we can even place Beth in an extra wide bed when she's transferred up to the maternity ward so that they can be in the same bed instead of two separate ones. But before I go on record and give you an official yes or no answer I'll have to talk with her husband's surgeon, and see what he has to say about the idea."

Happy about Dr. Bloom's answer, yet slightly perplexed about the last part Gina replied,

"Thank you again Dr. Bloom, Beth will be so happy if they could be in the same room together. The only thing is that I don't know the name of the surgeon who performed Sam's operation."

Waving her hand as if shooing away an annoying fly Dr. Bloom replied,

"Oh that'll be no problem for me dear. All I have to do is look up…Sam's?" Dr. Bloom watched as Gina gave her a quick affirmative nod, "Sam's records to find out his surgeon's name. Once I've talked with him and get a response I'll be sure to let you three ladies know right away."

With their little discussion now concluded Dr. Bloom swiftly walked from the room. Returning to her previous position beside Beth's bed Gina informed the third time new mother of what Dr. Bloom had said to the suggestion that Gina had proposed. Immediately upon hearing Gina's genius proposal Beth's face started to shine as bright as the sun along with a sunny smile on her lips to match. Feeling the need to share one of the two joyous pieces of news that they had to share Beth asked,

"That's great Gina, hey do you think you can take a picture of me and Alexis and send it to the guys? I want to share the news with them that we have yet another girl amongst our wide spread ranks of children."

Happy and overly eager to oblige Gina retrieved her cell phone from within her jean pocket, sending the precious picture along with a short informative message to Mick's phone as soon as the picture was taken. With no further use for her phone Gina returned it to her jean pocket. Not sure how long it would be before they would receive a reply from the guys Gina once again seated herself on the side of Beth's bed to wait along with Beth, Alexis, and Garcia for the guys' return response…

-CM: SB-

Back over on the other side of the hospital both Mick and Prophet was taking refuge inside Sam's recovery room, each in their own seat next to Sam's bed. The room was consumed with silence, the only sound heard came from the heart monitor positioned above Sam's bed. The lead senior agent had yet to awaken from his surgery induced slumber, but from the small movements that he been doing over the past hour both Mick and Prophet knew that it wouldn't be much longer till Sam finally opened his eyes. Then from within the confines of Mick's pocket his phone gave a loud beep, the sound echoing off the room's silence-filled walls. Not initially expecting any phone calls or messages Mick pulled out the device curious about what the sound was announcing.

Finding the newly sent message from Gina Mick quickly opened it, a broad smile spreading across his face as he examined the message's content. Turning in his seat Mick shared his smile with Prophet as he showed him the text message photo and said,

"Hey man, looks like we have another little girl added to our extended family."

His own smile breaking out across his lips Prophet gave an exaggerated sigh, slapping his thigh as he said,

"Aw man, that means that the girls now outnumber us by two; that simple fact alone kind of stinks when you think about it. And you know that Garcia has already mentioned that to Beth and Gina, and she's probably bubbling with pure joy right about now over it."

Even though he knew that what Prophet had said was true Mick couldn't help but laugh softly along with Prophet. Their laughter session was cut short however when an audible groan rose from Sam's hospital bed. Their laughter extinguished Mick and Prophet practically flew from their seats to stand beside Sam's bed. As Sam continued to moan softly feelings of immense relief washed over the two patiently waiting men- Sam was finally beginning to awaken from his deep sleep. As Sam's eyes slowly fluttered open identical smiles of pure joy spread across Mick's and Prophet's faces; gently placing his hand upon Sam's muscular shoulder Mick said,

"Hey Coop, glad to see that you're finally waking up; you've been asleep for a long time. How are you feeling buddy?"

His voice scratchy, coming from not being used for such a long period of time, Sam softly replied,

"Groggy…sore…"

Eyes still slightly glossy from the anesthesia Sam looked past Prophet and Mick as if searching for something. No not something- someone; immediately upon seeing Sam looking around the room Mick knew that he was looking for Beth, expecting her to be there waiting for him to wake. Confused Sam's mind filled with questions, all of which were swimming around each other making it hard to choose which to ask first. Turning his confused eyes back to Prophet and Mick, his chosen question now in mind, Sam asked,

"What about the case…Where's Beth?"

Facing the double bombardment of questions Mick and Prophet exchanged glances; both thinking the same questions- which question should we answer first? Who's going to tell him about Beth? Breaking eye contact with Mick, Prophet took a deep breath to fill him with courage before he replied,

"The case is over Coop, we caught the guy who shot you and the other three retired agents. It was a man named Jonah Becker; he's the son of Jerrod Becker whom you, James, Marshall, and Maxwell caught twelve years ago. He was basically getting revenge for his father by taking out the four men who arrested him all those years ago; that's just brushing the surface of the giant pile that was Jonah Becker's life. Thankfully he is now in Chief Midston's and the Henrico PD's custody, and will be going to prison for a long time, so you don't have to worry yourself over it anymore Coop."

Listening intently to every word that Prophet had said Sam allowed the meanings of each word to sink in. But while he did this, in the back of his mind Sam couldn't help but think, 'but what about Beth? Why didn't they say anything about her?' Wanting desperately to know how Beth was coping with everything Sam turned and stared expectantly at Mick. Knowing that he was the one stuck with the grand job of informing Sam about Beth Mick heaved a light sigh before he answered,

"I know that look you're giving me Coop, you want to know about Beth and how she's doing…" Mick Saw Sam give him a small nod of his head, "Well the truth of the matter is that when we told her about what happened, she freaked out just like you said she would, but she wasn't all that emotional, at least not like we had expected. She must have gotten her emotional response to the news out of the way while she and Garcia were still back at the station. She actually, along with Prophet, helped persuade me that you getting shot weren't my fault, and that I couldn't have prevented it; but that's something for a later date. But that's not all that happened Sam, there's more. Beth's water broke and she went into labor while you were in surgery when we were all sitting in the surgical waiting room waiting to hear something…"

Hearing this particular piece of information Sam's eyes practically bugged out of his head, the heart monitor beeping loudly overhead as he exclaimed,

"WHAT! She went into labor? Oh man I knew something like this would happen when she found out…Is she ok, have you heard anything? Are Gina and Garcia with her?"

Wanting nothing more than to stop Sam's panicked rambling and to silence the monitor's rapid beeping, Mick squeezed Sam's shoulder in reassurance as he interceded,

"Hey, hey Coop, calm down, just calm down man. Beth is absolutely fine; Gina and Garcia accompanied her to labor and delivery to help her through everything. As for your second question of have I heard anything about her status recently? Well I am happy to say that I have…" Mick raised his cell phone, still opened to Gina's message, and showed Sam the recently sent photo, "Congratulations man, you are the third time proud father of a beautiful baby girl."

Gazing at the slightly pixilated image on the phone's screen a smile worthy of the chessaur cat spread across Sam's face while tears of both joy and sadness slid down his cheeks as he said,

"Little Alexis, she sure is a little angel if I ever saw one, just like her sister when she was born. It's just too bad that I couldn't have been there to see her when she was born, to help Beth through it all. Instead I was in a medically induced sleep, having a bullet removed from my chest; the result of which hurts like hell by the way."

Despite the slight twinge of despair resonating in Sam's voice his true feelings still shone brightly upon his face; crystal clear for everyone to see. Right then, just as Mick returned his now closed phone back to its pocket, there came a soft knock on the hospital room's wooden door. With no utter idea of who else could be knocking on Sam's recovery room door Prophet swiftly strode over to the closed door, and pulled it open. There, standing outside the doorway with his usual calm demeanor, and a smile to match was the doctor who performed Sam's surgery. While still unsure of why the doctor was there Prophet returned the smile, stepping aside to allow him entrance into the still dimly light room.

Stepping into the room past Prophet's still as stone stance the surgeon was greeted by two additional looks of confusion from Sam and Mick. All three teammates were seated together firmly in the boat of uncertainty. Taking the triplet expression in fair strides the doctor walked over to the end of Sam's bed. Giving his now awake patient the same smile that he had given Prophet just moments ago the doctor said,

"Hello Mr. Cooper, I'm Dr. Malvern, I'm the one who performed your surgery and removed the bullet from your chest. I must say that I'm happy to see you awake and back with us here in the real world. I don't know if your two colleagues here have had a chance to tell you or not, but you are a very lucky man Mr. Cooper; your surgery went perfectly but if the bullet had been just four centimeters over to the right it would have pierced your heart. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you must have a guardian angel watching over you."

Noticing the hint of surprise on Sam's face of how far the bullet was from his heart Dr. Malvern gave him a minute to process before he continued,

"Now I didn't come here just to check up on you, I'm actually here for an entirely different reason. Not ten minutes ago I received a phone call from a Dr. Bloom; she explained to me that she was the fill-in OBGYN for your wife. Now, Dr. Bloom told me everything that was going on with your wife going into labor during your surgery, and she asked me for my approval for you to be transferred to your wife's room up in the maternity ward, that is if I felt you're capable of the transfer. So before I say yes or no I want to ask you a couple of questions."

His face calm with his eyes filled with hope Sam nodded his head. Walking along the opposite and unoccupied side of the bed Dr. Malvern came to stand beside Sam. Unsnapping the three buttons on the shoulder of Sam's gown Dr. Malvern pulled the garment down the reveal the small wad of gauze taped to Sam's chest. After closely examining the area for a moment Dr. Malvern asked,

"On a scale from one to ten, what's your pain like?"

Sam considered the question for a moment,

"About a seven I guess, but I also have a pretty fair tolerance for pain."

Making a mental note of Sam's pain rating Dr. Malvern nodded his head,

"Well that's good. I'll let the nurses up in the maternity ward know to give you Tylenol or any other pain reliever if the pain gets too much for you to handle, as well as to change the bandage at specific intervals. Other than that I don't see why you can't be transferred to your wife's room. I'll just disconnect you from the heart monitor and then I'll help you reattach your sleeve before going to inform a few aids of your transfer and the exact location. All in all, you'll be on your way in about five, ten minutes. And let me also add my congratulations to the new addition to your family Mr. Cooper."

Unable to find his voice from the sudden and unexpected onslaught of shock Sam simply nodded his head at Dr. Malvern as he turned and walked out of the room. Mick and Prophet must have been as shocked as Sam because no words escaped their mouths either for a few minutes. The meanings of Dr. Malvern's words were taking an extended amount of time to sink into each of the three gentlemen's brains. The idea of being transferred up to Beth's room, to be able to see Beth and baby Alexis, as well as share a room with them was surreal to Sam; like a dream that he would soon wake up from. Erasing the horrid thought from his mind the true realization of what was unfolding finally sunk in, causing a blissful smile to fill Sam's lips.

While watching the blissful smile continue to spread over Sam's face Mick couldn't help but smile as well; he knew that not many doctors would have tried as hard as Dr. Malvern and Dr. Bloom had to get a husband and wife together in the same hospital room, especially when one of them had just had surgery to remove a bullet from his chest while the other had just given birth to their third child. Without a doubt this was definitely a once in a lifetime opportunity for both Beth and Sam; they both deserved it too. Beside him Prophet, as if he and Mick had been on the same wavelength, said,

"Man Coop, you sure are one lucky son of a gun. This transfer that you're getting is great; it's an opportunity of a lifetime for you and Beth. Not only that by all three of us get to see and officially meet Alexis. I swear man, I can hardly wait I'm so excited."

Seeing the truth of Prophet's words practically filling every crevice of his face Mick and Sam couldn't help but laugh at how much Prophet resembled a child in a freshly stocked candy store; the expression painted on his face was a priceless additive. As both men's soft but heavy laughter died down there came a gentle knock on the door just before it was slowly cracked open. Through the medium size crack of the now open door they saw a young man's face apprehensively peering into the room. As if sensing no real immediate threat from the three men in the room the young man opened the door the rest of the way, revealing a second young man standing beside him. After taking a few deep breaths, as if he had been building up his courage to enter the room occupied by the three FBI agents, the young man and his friend stepped into the room and said,

"Mr. Cooper, I'm Diego and this is my friend Mark. Dr. Malvern asked us to transfer you from this room up to room 472, your wife's room, in the maternity ward. If the three of you are all ready to go we can get going now."

Nervous as a guilty criminal seated beneath a bright interrogation light Diego, while shuffling his feet, anxiously awaited Sam's response. Even though he had been working as an aid for two years it was a little nerve wracking to be standing in a hospital room with three FBI agents, even if one was recovering from surgery, waiting for a response to begin the transfer. Finally, after time seemed to drag by, relief filled Diego as Sam nodded his head in agreement. An affirmative response given, Diego and Mark immediately started to prepare Sam for transport while Prophet and Mick watched from the sidelines. With both side rails locked in their upright positions, and the wheels unlocked the two young aids began wheeling Sam out of the recovery room with Mick and Prophet following right behind them; heading out on their newest journey…


	11. Introductions Part 1

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait, but I am now finally able to give you the next chapter to the story. Sadly I am nearing the end of this story. I think there will be one more chapter and then it will be complete. There's not much else that I can say other than there is a lot going on in this chapter. Like always, read and enjoy:)**

Chapter 11- Introductions Part 1

Up on the fourth floor in room 472 of the maternity ward Beth was settling into her newly designated establishment. Already seated comfortably in the double wide hospital bed with Alexis cradled contently in her arms as she anxiously awaited Sam's impending arrival along with Mick and Prophet. True to her word, after receiving Dr. Malvern's approval for Sam's transfer, Dr. Bloom had returned to share the news with Beth, Gina, and Garcia. Then, not even five minutes after delivering the enlightening news Dr. Bloom had Beth and Alexis moved up to the maternity ward and into their current temporary place of residence. Looking down at Alexis' calm face Beth gave her a nervous smile as she said,

"Alright Alexis, your Daddy is on his way up here to see us. Are you ready to meet him?"

Hearing Beth's slight nervousness crackling within each word she said Gina stepped over beside Beth's bed and said,

"Relax Beth there's no need for you to be nervous. I just got a text message form Mick; he said that they just stepped off the elevator outside the ward's main doors, so they'll be here in a few minutes. But still, there's no reason for you to be nervous; try taking a deep breath to calm your nerves. You nerve know, it may help."

Taking a deep breath like Gina had suggested Beth was happy to find that the techniques actually worked, her nervousness had completely disappeared. Smiling up at Gina Beth replied,

"Thanks Gina, that deep breath really helped, it made my nervousness completely disappear. I know that there was no need for me to feel nervous, but I couldn't help it. Sam is finally going to meet Alexis along with Mick and Prophet, and I guess I'm subconsciously nervous of his reaction to seeing her since he wasn't able to be there with me during the actual birth."

Noting a pinch of pain and fear in Beth's voice Garcia, wanted to desperately to extinguish the problems that Beth's nervousness had made surface, stepped closer as well and quickly interceded,

"Beth Cooper, don't you dare try and think that Sam will react badly upon seeing Alexis. It doesn't matter if he was there with you during the birth or not. He will fall instantly in love with her like the three of us did, and the same goes for Mick and Prophet. I don't think there is a single person alive who can resist this little cutie."

Smiling lovingly down at Alexis Beth simply nodded her head in agreement to Garcia's final words. Then, not even a full two minutes later there came a gentle knock at the room's wooden door. Unable to see who it was that was at the door, and consumed with curiosity Beth loudly answered,

"It's open!"

Hearing the sound of multiple pairs of feet enter the room the three female agents were curious over who could be coming to visit Beth and Alexis. Their intriguing mystery was quickly solved however when Mick, with Prophet by his side, pulled back the privacy curtain to create more space in the room; giant smiles were on both of their faces as Mick said,

"Hey Beth, sorry it took us so long, but we have someone here who would really like to see you, and I'm pretty sure that you want to see him too."

Smiling brightly with pure anticipation at Mick's words Beth vigorously nodded her head. Without Mick having to say a word, as if Beth's nod was a signal in itself, the sound of squeaky wheels was heard from in the hall outside the room. Guided by Mark and Diego Sam was swiftly wheeled into the room, a smile already on his face as he gazed over at Beth holding Alexis in her arms. Beth's own smile immediately started to grow when she saw Sam, nearly splitting her face in two as she said,

"Hey sweetie, how are you doing so far?"

Trying not to cause himself any pain Sam shrugged his shoulders slightly as he replied,

"I'm doing good so far, but I'm happy as ever to finally be able to see you and that beautiful baby in your arms."

Right at that moment Diego and Mark rolled Sam's transport bed up beside Beth's double wide bed. Lowering the transport bed's left side rail in just one elongated, but swift motion, the two aids maneuvered Sam over closer to the other bed till the two of them were touching each other with no room in between. Standing at the end of the transport bed Diego gave Sam a nod of his head as he said,

"Ok Mr. Cooper, I know that this is going to be painful for you but I need you to lift up your body and transfer it onto the double wide bed. Just go slow and take your time; there's no need for you to rush. We also wouldn't want you to pull any of your stitches or staples that are holding your incision together."

Nodding his head to show that he understood Sam started the process of transferring himself onto the double wide bed beside Beth. Going slow just like Diego had suggested Sam found the seemingly simple task to be rather difficult. With each move he made, no matter how small, it caused Sam to experience pain around his sutured chest wound. Enduring the pain Sam inched his way little by little onto the double bed to his rightful place at Beth's side. Smiling in triumph Sam, with some help from Gina, settled into his new bed, graciously accepting the comfort it offered.

Taking the now empty transport bed with them, Diego and Mark made their way out of the room to give its many occupants their much deserved privacy, closing the door behind them as they went. The two hospital aids now gone, Mick casually made his way over to where Gina stood beside Sam's side of the bed, and wrapped his arms around her waist while keeping his eyes trained on Sam, Beth, and little Alexis.

Along with his newly assumed position on the bed Sam also had a new vantage point to look at his newest little angel. The picture that Mick had shown him earlier on his phone didn't do the little angel justice; she was much cuter in person. Raising his hand Sam gently stroked Alexis' soft cheek as he turned to Beth and said,

"She is absolutely beautiful Beth, just like you. I love both of you so much, I'm sorry that I couldn't have been there for the delivery."

With tears of joy welling up in her eyes making them sparkle, Beth leaned over to Sam and planted a short passionate kiss on his lips before she replied,

"I love you too, and I'm sure Alexis does too. Don't be sorry for missing the delivery though, it wasn't your fault that you couldn't be there. Besides, I had a lot of help from Gina and Garcia during the entire ordeal. And anyways, out of our now three children, you were present for two out of the three births, so I think that's pretty fair."

Laughing softly at the unmistakable truth in Beth's words Sam nodded his head in agreement. Beth, gazing down at Alexis for a moment, looked back up at Sam, and asked,

"Well Sam, would you like to hold your daughter?"

Despite being a little apprehensive of the pain the action might cause Sam still nodded his head; knowing that the joy that he would feel from holding Alexis for the first time would be worth the little pain he received. Without skipping a beat Beth twisted herself around on the bed so that she was completely facing Sam, and gently placed Alexis's bundled form into his waiting arms. Cradling Alexis securely in his arms Sam smiled down at her angelic face. Consumed with fatherly pride Sam was relieved that, despite a brief twinge of pain in his chest when he first arranged his arms to cradle Alexis' bundled form, he hadn't experienced anymore pain. His thoughts filled with innocent curiosity Sam looked over at Beth and asked,

"So, is it safe for me to assume that you gave our daughter the name that we agreed on? No harm, no foul if you didn't exactly; I'm sure whatever middle name you gave her is as wonderful as her first name."

A soft amused laugh passed through Beth's smile parted lips as she listened to Sam's slight ramble of words. Gently placing a hand on Sam's forearm Beth replied,

"Yes Sam your assumption is safe and correct- I did use the name that we had agreed on. Our little angel's full name is Alexis Marie Cooper. The name fits her so perfectly that I couldn't change it even if I had wanted to."

Over on the opposite side of the huge bed, standing beside Garcia, Prophet said,

"Hey, what about those of us here who haven't been introduced, huh. What about us?"

Giving Prophet a mischievous look Beth swiftly countered,

"You have ears don't you Prophet?"

Catching the mischievous glint sparkling brightly in Beth's eyes as she asked this Prophet gave her a smile back, dramatically rolling his eyes as he countered,

"Yes Beth I do have ears and they would perfectly, but that doesn't exclude the fact that Mick and I have yet to be introduced to the adorable little figure cradled in Sam's arms."

The mischievous glint grew brighter in Beth's eyes as both she and Garcia erupted into fits of laughter in response to Prophet's answering words. Smiling as if she were on the top of the world, while still laughing softly, Garcia turned to face Gina and held her hand out, palm up, expectantly. Heaving an exasperated sigh of surrender Gina retrieved a small wad of money from her jean pocket, placing the agreed amount into Garcia's waiting hand. Knowing already that she too would receive the same payment Beth also held out her hand so as to retrieve her rightful prize. After taking in both Beth's and Garcia's smiling faces as well as Gina's sweetly sour face Mick, realizing what must have taken place long before their arrival, started chuckling uncontrollably. Placing his chin on Gina's sagged shoulder Mick question,

"So let me get this straight- you three sweet, level headed ladies made a bet on how Prophet and or I would react if you didn't introduce us to Alexis? Is that about right, or did I forget something?"

Heaving another sigh Gina shook her head,

"No Mick you basically got it right on the nose. I knew I shouldn't have made that bet, especially after Beth sided with Garcia. Now I'm short forty bucks."

Still smirking Mick tightened his grip around Gina's waist as if giving her a backwards sympathetic hug as he replied,

"Oh don't fret Love, forty bucks isn't that much, especially when you consider how much money Prophet and I bet with against one another on occasion. Besides, putting your betting loss aside, what you ladies did was brilliant, devilish, but still brilliant."

Allowing Mick's complementary words to sink in Beth returned her now normal gaze to Prophet and said,

"Don't worry Prophet; the three of us were just kidding with you. As you've previously pointed out to me some time ago in the past, we aren't just a team, we're a family. Keeping that particular piece of information in mind, did you really think that I wouldn't introduce Alexis to her two wonderful uncles?"

Even though his cheeks burned red with embarrassment Prophet's face held a genuine smile of excitement in response to Beth's words while an equally excited smile was painted over Mick's face as well. Taking in the excited smiles on both men's faces Beth gave a soft giggle as she looked over at Alexis, still cradled in Sam's arms before she returned her gaze to Mick and Prophet, and said,

"Alright Mick and Prophet, I'd like you two to meet Alexis Marie Cooper…" Beth cocked her head at Prophet, "are you happy now Prophet?"

With a smile that nearly split his face in two on his lips Prophet nodded his head,

"Yes Beth I am very happy, thank you."

With her own smile on her face Beth shook her head with exaggeration as she turned her head to look back over at Sam. Without having to utter a word Sam, seeming to understand what Beth intended to do next, gently returned Alexis to her arms. While gently rocking Alexis back and forth Beth looked around at Garcia, Gina, Mick, and Prophet and asked,

"Ok, so who's going to be the first to hold Alexis?"

Fast as lightning, like two school girls in class, Gina and Garcia raised their hands simultaneously into the air. Right away, upon seeing both women's quick responses, Mick released his grip on Gina's waist and stared at the two of them and asked,

"Now wait a minute here, won't it be unfair for the two of you to get to hold Alexis before me and Prophet? I mean, haven't you both already had a chance to hold her before now?"

Slightly offended by Mick's question Garcia stared at him from across the length of the hospital bed with her hands planted firmly on her hips as she retorted,

"Actually, for your information my handsome Brit, Gina and I haven't held Alexis yet. We decided that we'd wait for the rest of you guys to get here before we held her. You know, play the fair card, and wait."

Not expecting to hear that Gina and Garcia had decided to wait for them to arrive till they held Alexis, Mick was a little taken back as he hastily replied,

"Oh well then in that case I do apologize Penelope, I didn't realize what you and Gina had so graciously decided to do. Please, ladies first, both of you."

Watching as Garcia's hard, challenging expression quickly changed to giddy excitement in response to Mick's kind suggestion, Beth quickly added,

"And Garcia, since you're standing over here on my side of the bed, and as long as Gina doesn't mind, would you like to be the first to hold Alexis?"

While Garcia vigorously nodded her head, without even a second thought, Beth quickly glanced over at Gina in hopes of getting a register on her opinion of what was about to happen. Just as Beth had hoped Gina, being equally as gracious as her husband, nodded her head in silent approval as she smiled at Garcia's open excitement. With Gina's approval given, Beth swiftly placed Alexis into Garcia's anxiously open arms. Immediately upon having Alexis placed in her arms Garcia accurately honed her attention in on the precious little girl as if she had entered her own little universe within her own mind. Continuing the gentle rocking motion that Beth had initiated Garcia smiled lovingly down at Alexis as she softly cooed,

"Hey there little cutie, I'm your Aunt Pen. Just like I did with your big brother and sister, I am going to spoil you as much as I possibly can. No matter what your Mommy has to say about it."

Shaking her head in mock disbelief Beth heaved a dramatic sigh as she said,

"Oh God, I knew I should have let Gina hold 'Lexi first. I had an inkling that Garcia was going to say something like this but I ignored it…"

Already fully aware that Beth was just joking with her Garcia, acting like a small child, stuck her tongue out at her brunette friend before she countered,

"Yeah sure you did little missy, but let me tell you something- even if you had given Alexis to Gina first I guarantee you that I still would promise to spoil her when it was my turn to hold her. Besides, it's not like I'm going to be the only one doing it, Mick, Gina, and Prophet will most likely do it as well just like they did with Sarah and Wyatt."

Already aware of the unmistakable truth of Garcia's words Beth nodded her head in silent acknowledgement. Garcia was absolutely right, but despite how bad the impending situation may have seemed, within the sanctuary of her own mind Beth actually welcomed the act of her newest daughter being spoiled like her older siblings were. Still not speaking a word Beth's lips broke into a smile at the idea circling around in her head. At that moment Prophet, while standing contently behind Garcia's shoulder, reluctantly tore his eyes away from Alexis to look at both Beth and Sam and asked,

"Speaking of Sarah and Wyatt, have the two of you considered how you're going to explain this to them? I mean when we left for this case it was just the six of us adults with no physical baby, but now when we do head back home you'll be bringing back an actual baby. Not to mention that Sam will still be recovering from his surgery. Both of those things are rather big surprises for two young kids to be dealt and have to deal with."

Having rushed through the explanation in a single breath Prophet took a moment to refill his lungs with the much needed air. Giving Prophet enough time to replenish his air supply as well as for Garcia to transfer Alexis into Gina's arms, Beth waited. Making eye contact with Garcia the two women shared a smile as Beth returned her gaze to Prophet and replied,

"Actually Prophet the three of us ladies have already worked out a plan for the situation. Here in a little while, after Gina has had her turn holding Alexis, she and Garcia are going to head back home and pick up Sarah and Wyatt from Julie's house and bring them back here. Garcia has already volunteered to watch them tonight at the hotel till they come visit us. At that time we'll introduce them to their little sister as well as explain in simple terms what happened to Sam."

Nodding his head a look of curiosity filled Mick's face as he asked,

"Alright, but Prophet and I will still have a chance to hold her now too, right?"

Catching the worry heavy in Mick's voice Beth couldn't help but giggle softly as she replied,

"Yes Mick you and Prophet will each have a chance to hold Alexis tonight, as well as another chance to hold her tomorrow when the kids come to visit. The only thing we aren't doing is awarding guardian titles, as they are the same as they were with Sarah and Wyatt."

Shrugging his shoulders Prophet said,

"Sounds good to me; I just have one question- I heard Beth mention it to Gina one time a while back, but was Alexis really an unexpected surprise for you guys?"

Prophet waited with nervous, baited breath as Sam and Beth exchanged glances, releasing it a moment later as Beth nodded her head,

"Yes Prophet she was but she is by far the best surprise that I've ever received. But just so that this never happens again I'm going to talk with my doctor during my next appointment about getting my tubes tied."

Prophet faked a wince of pain in reaction to Beth's words as he replied,

"Ouch Beth, don't you think that that's a little harsh?"

Seeing the look of mock glare that Beth was giving Prophet Mick, unable to pass up the perfect opportune moment, clapped his hand onto Prophet's shoulder as he said,

"I'd be careful Mate; you never know what Beth could do to you by saying that."

Chuckling at his fellow male teammates Sam quickly interceded,

"Actually Prophet, Beth and I talked about it and we've decided that three kids are plenty of blessings for us."

Unsure how to respond Prophet decided not to say a word as he mutely nodded his head in understanding. At that moment Gina, still cradling Alexis in her arms, walked up beside him and smiled as she said,

"Choosing not to actually speak, you made a good choice Prophet. And because of that good choice I think that you should be the one to hold Alexis next."

With a look of overwhelming joy bright upon his face Prophet graciously took Alexis' bundled form into his open arms. Turning back around to face the double wide bed Gina looked over at Beth and asked,

"So along with collecting Sarah and Wyatt from Julie's place, as well as picking up the newborn car seat and hospital bag, is there anything else you need us to get?"

After taking a moment to contemplate Gina's question Beth shook her head no,

"No I don't think so. The only other thing would be for you guys to pick up the presents that I know you both have already bought for her, and bring them with you so that you can give them to her now."

Knowing that it was useless to deny the clear and evident truth in Beth's words Gina remained silent, her cheeks blushing a light pink in embarrassment. It was sometimes a little annoying how well Beth knew both her and Garcia, especially when it came to them buying gifts for the kids. Noticing the lop-sided grin fixed into place on Beth's face Gina gave her the same grin in return. Turning her head yet again Gina's lop-sided grin quickly changed into a soft laugh at the childish pout that currently covered Mick's face. Before Gina could open her mouth Garcia walked over to Mick and gently tapped his pouting face as she said,

"Aw don't be like that handsome; you'll get your chance to hold Alexis after Prophet has had his turn. You just have to be patient and take turns like good little boys."

Catching onto the hinted child-like comparison between himself and Prophet Mick smirked; just the reaction Garcia had been hoping for. Her brief mission accomplished Garcia looked over at Gina and asked,

"Well my fair Gina are you ready to hit the road so that we can pick up the kids and everything else before making our way back here in a decent amount of time?"

Retrieving the keys to one of the Bureau issued SUVs from her jean pocket Gina dangled them in the air for Garcia to see as she replied,

"Yep, and I've already got the keys, so let's go…" Gina turned to look around at everything else in the room, "See you guys when we get back. Try not to have too much fun while we're gone."

With the sounds of their teammates' soft laughter behind him Gina and Garcia made their way to the heavy wooden door; heading out to begin their newest little adventure…


	12. Introductions Part 2

**A/N: Hey everyone, sorry its been so long since I last updated, I didn't mean for it be that long a time. This chapter actually part of what caused the giant freeze in updating, it gave me a lot of trouble near the end of the chapter that I couldn't figure out where and how to end it. Thankfully I finally found a decent place to stop. Not to mention that I signed up for a summer course for school, and the assignments for said class have been keeping me extra bus and will probably continue to make it difficult for me to update often. At least until the class ends in the middle of July, and then I'll have a month's time to write and update more often til classes start back up for the Fall at the end of August. Lastly I just wanted to say thank you to all of you who have sent me reviews for all of the other chapters in this story. They really mean a lot to me. Also, the next chapter will probably be the last chapter of this story. Now enough of me talking and wasting valuable reading time, have fun reading. Like always, read and enjoy, and send me a review telling me what you think:)**

Chapter 12- Introductions Part 2

From outside Sam's and Beth's combined hospital room the last of the sun's rays shined through the room's moderate sized window, as the rest of the world outside was slowly engulfed in darkness. It was close approaching eight o'clock at night; nearly four hours since Gina and Garcia had departed for home. The time's passing was slow, verging on torturous. All Beth wanted was to see her two oldest children, and introduce them to their little sister, but in order for that to happen she had to wait for Gina's and Garcia's return. At that moment, as if in response to Beth's eager anticipation, Mick's phone beeped announcing the retrieval of a new text message. Taking a moment to read his message a smile worked itself onto Mick's lips as he announced,

"That was Gina, she says that they just got off the interstate onto Glenside, and are going to head straight to the hotel since visiting hours end in an hour…"

A second beep sounded from Mick's phone, interrupting what he was about to say. Pausing Mick quickly opened the newly received text message; his smile growing larger at the message's content. Looking up from his phone Mick was met by both Sam's and Beth's ever expectant faces. Swiftly Mick handed Beth his phone as he continued,

"And apparently the second reason for Gina's and Garcia's sudden change of destination would be because both Wyatt and Sarah have already fallen asleep during the car ride."

The evidence before them spoke for itself; there on the device's screen was a picture, most likely taken by Gina with her own phone, of Wyatt and Sarah sound asleep in the backseat of the SUV; with Wyatt's head propped against Sarah's shoulder as if it were a pillow. The captured moment was a precious thing for Beth and Sam to behold; to be informed that their two oldest children were together and close by with people whom they trusted with their lives. That single fact alone seemed to help ease Beth's eager anticipation, and calm her mind. She and Sam would see Sarah and Wyatt in the morning after they have awoken from their pleasant slumber.

While placing his cell phone back into his jean pocket Mick exchanged a quick glance with Prophet; both men coming to a mentally made agreement, before he cleared his throat and said,

"Well guys, I guess since Gina and Garcia are headed straight for the hotel with the kids that we'll be heading that way as well. Give the two of you some personal bonding time with Alexis before you turn the lights out for the much needed shut eye that you both deserve."

Now standing near the end of the double wide bed Prophet added,

"And don't worry, we'll keep Sarah and Wyatt busy tomorrow morning so that they don't try and have us come visit you guys at the crack of dawn. We'll even call when we're on our way here to give you guys a heads up."

Appreciating the reassuring promise that Prophet had made them Beth and Sam settled down deeper into their bed; relishing in the room's peaceful silence as Prophet and Mick made their leave. To be given their privacy to bond with their daughter was one of the most generous gifts they had ever received; for when they returned home it would be a rare thing to have such a bonding time as private as they now had. Turing her head Beth gazed lovingly down at Alexis' peaceful form still cradled comfortably in her father's arms. Taking note of how content Alexis was Beth could already tell that she would be a true Daddy's girl as she got older; the adoring look on Sam's face brought truth to Beth's thoughts.

It was then, while watching Sam cradle Alexis in his arms, that Beth saw the exhaustion that completely covered Sam's face. Knowing that with everything that had happened, Sam had had an eventful day, and needed his rest. Tenderly placing her hand upon his arm Beth softly spoke,

"Sam, you look exhausted. Why don't you let me hold Alexis for a little while before I place her in her bed so that you can get some sleep? You've had an eventful day today honey, you need your rest; especially if Sarah and Wyatt are going to come and see us tomorrow."

A deep, but soft sigh escaped Sam's lips, as if he were somehow reluctant to transfer Alexis into Beth's arms and give in to sleep. Already knowing what had created Sam's hesitation Beth gently rubbed her hand up and down Sam's arm, soothing him as she said,

"Sam, you can't go on with your life without sleep. You and I already know that what we experience in our dreams isn't real; they're just the resulting creation of our minds as it tries to process what has happened. Just remember that if you do have a dream, that I am here if you need me, always ready to listen."

A sense of calm relief fell over Sam, shining brightly in his eyes. Heaving another sigh, different from the first, Sam slowly turned and placed Alexis into Beth's arms as he replied,

"You're right Beth I do need sleep, even if I do dream, my mind is already at ease because you are here beside me."

After receiving a lingering good night kiss from Beth Sam laid his head down on his pillow; falling asleep in less than a minute. Listening to Sam's deep, even breathes Beth couldn't help but smile as she gently rocked Alexis and said,

"You hear that Lexi'? Your Daddy is already fast asleep. I guess he was a lot more tired than he realized. No matter, while Daddy sleeps you and I can spend some quality time together before we too succumb to needed sleep."

Gazing up at her mother's face, as if intrigued by Beth's words, Alexis gave a content sigh as she closed her eyes and snuggled her face down closer to Beth's warm chest. In no time at all, the precious little bundle in Beth's arms had also fallen asleep. While watching Alexis sleep peacefully in her arms, as if the need to sleep had become contagious, Beth let out a long, tired yawn. Eyes' drooping from the sudden exhaustion, Beth was grateful of Gina's idea to move the hospital mobile crib closer to the bed. Moving slowly so as not to disturb Alexis, Beth gingerly rose from the bed, and gently laid Alexis down in her mobile crib before returning to the comfortable confines of her own bed. Just like with Sam, the minute Beth laid her head upon her pillow she was pulled into a pleasant slumber.

-CM:SB-

Even after two wake up calls with Alexis during the night Beth, having taken both turns so that Sam could get more of his much needed sleep, still felt the rejuvenating energy of a fairly good night's sleep. As the sun's first early morning rays filtered in through the hospital room's window Beth was awoken from her light slumber. Feeling the sun's warm rays upon her face Beth smiled groggily. Stretching her arms up above her head Beth turned to look over at Sam, and was surprised to find him still fast asleep.

Being as quiet as a mouse so as not to disturb Sam's peaceful and tranquil sleep, Beth got out of bed and stood beside Alexis' mobile crib; hearing a soft almost inaudible coo from within the mobile crib Beth knew that her newest little girl, her little angel, was already awake. Gazing down into the inner depths of the mobile crib Beth was greeted by Alexis' angelic face staring back up at her. Placing her hand into the crib Beth gently caressed Alexis' soft cheek with the tip of her finger as she softly spoke,

"Good morning Alexis, looks like it's just you and me awake so far; Daddy's still fast asleep. Why don't we try and let him sleep a little longer? What do you say?"

Bending down over the crib to pick up Alexis' now wiggling form a tainted but still potent odor hit Beth's nose with full force. Wrinkling her nose slightly in response to the smell Beth quickly amended,

"But first I have to change your dirty diaper. We wouldn't want its strong odor to wake up Daddy."

Reaching down Beth swiftly retrieved a fresh diaper from the shelf beneath the crib before getting straight to work relieving Alexis of her poppy diaper. In just a matter of minutes the simple task was complete; leaving Alexis smelling like a freshly cleaned baby. Cradling her newly changed daughter in her arms Beth gently resumed her spot on the double wide bed beside Sam.

Despite Beth's best efforts to not disturb Sam's sleep, a low moan escaped Sam's lips as Beth settled back against her pillow. Turning her head in Sam's direction Beth watched as Sam began to stir from his deep, now interrupted, slumber. In spite of feeling guilty for disrupting Sam's period of deep sleep a smile slid into place upon Beth's face. Waiting Beth continued to watch as Sam blinked his eyes several times, trying to clear them of the fog that was heavily coated in drowsiness. When Sam gave his head a quick shake, a final act of desperation to rid him of the fog, Beth laughed softly as she said,

"Good morning sleepyhead. Sorry for waking you, I was hoping to let you sleep a little longer. So does that head shake mean that you are officially joining us in the world of the conscious reality?"

His throat dry from sleep Sam gave a soft chuckle as he replied,

"Yes Beth I am now completely and officially awake; so how long have the two of you been awake for?"

Giving her shoulders a slight shrug Beth replied,

"Not long, five maybe ten minutes at the most. Besides, even if I hadn't of woken up when I did I expect that little missy here probably would have woken me up anyway so that I could change her very stinky diaper. Be thankful that you weren't awake to smell it."

Another chuckle escaped Sam's parched lips,

"I'm sure it was; I'm also sure that I will get my chance to smell that exact same kind of diaper, or at least one similar to it once we're home during one of my turns of diaper duty."

Giggling in return Beth replied,

"I have no doubt that you will."

At that moment, before either of them could utter another word, a soft knock sounded from the room's closed door, followed closely by the infamous squeaking of the door's hinges as the door was opened. Recalling Prophet's promise to call before hand to inform them of their impending arrival, both Sam and Beth knew that it wasn't their family of teammates coming to visit. Their curiosity was answered a moment later as a nurse with short blonde hair; wearing purple scrubs, while pushing a cart occupied with two trays of food, walked into the room. Seeing that both of her adult patients, as well as her infant patient, were awake the woman smiled as she said,

"Hello and good morning to the both of you. My name is Heidi and I'll be your nurse for the first part of the day…" Heidi brought the cart of food to a stop beside the two bed tray tables, "I've brought Breakfast for both of you, but before I can give you yours Mr. Cooper, your surgeon Dr. Malvern has asked me to check, and if needed, change your bandages, ok?"

Hearing the hint of nervousness in Heidi's voice Sam gave her a calm friendly smile as he answered,

"That all sounds fine with me Heidi, and please feel free to call me Sam."

Beth quickly added,

"And please feel free to call me Beth, Heidi."

Truly relieved by both of their responses Heidi's smile grew even bigger. Placing the first of the two trays of food onto a tray table Heidi swiftly maneuvered it around the bed, positioning it in front of Beth and Alexis. Smiling at the young woman in thanks Beth lifted the lid from her tray to examine her food while Heidi diligently did the same thing to Sam's wound and bandages. After applying a fresh bandage over Sam's healing chest wound Heidi presented Sam with his own tray of food before finally leaving the room.

Having not eaten anything since Breakfast at home the prior morning Sam was completely famished. Pulling his now uncovered food tray closer to him Sam took his time eating the food, savoring every last bite. Then fifteen minutes later, just as Sam was finishing up his own tray of food, there came another gentle knock at the door. The door being already open, into the room walked Dr. Bloom and Dr. Malvern to see their two patients. Coming to a halt at the end of the hospital bed both doctors smiled at Beth, Alexis, and Sam before Dr. Malvern said,

"Good morning to the both of you. Dr. Bloom and I decided to coordinate our schedules this morning so that we could come and see the two of you together; see how both of you are doing, and talk about the possible time frame for when each of you can be discharged."

At the mention of the impending discussion of their discharges, both Sam and Beth became overly attentive as Dr. Malvern continued with a light chuckle,

"I'm happy to see that both of your attentions were peeked by the mere mentioning of discharge. Now, being the gentleman that I am I will let Dr. Bloom go first."

Making her way around the double bed towards Beth and Alexis Dr. Bloom glanced down at Alexis' precious face as she spoke,

"Well Beth since there were no complications during the delivery and both you and Alexis are doing so well, as long as nothing happens to change this, I believe that you and Alexis should be able to be discharged two days from now."

No mere words could adequately describe the happiness that had consumed Beth's body. Just like literally every member of her team Beth wasn't too fond of hospitals, even if she never verbally admitted it. Smiling in joyous relief Beth nodded her head as she replied,

"Thank you Dr. Bloom, I can't tell you how happy I am at the prospect of getting out of this hospital, and actually be able to go home."

Knowing exactly how Beth felt Dr. Bloom simply smiled and nodded her head in return. Over on the other side of the bed Dr. Malvern softly cleared his throat before he spoke,

"Well, now that Dr. Bloom has done her part, I guess it's my turn. Now based on how well your recovery has progressed so far Sam, and as long as no signs of infection presents itself, I believe that you should be able to be discharged the day after you wife and baby girl. Now since I know that you're not going to want to make a trip back down here for me to remove the staples from your chest, I'm going to give you the number of a close colleague of mine who works in a hospital up where you live, a Dr. Mason Chess; just give him a call and set up an appointment with him and he'll remove the staples for you. He'll also talk with you about the temporary restrictions that will be placed on your physical activities. Now that that's been said, do you have any questions Sam?"

Remaining silent for a moment while considering all of what Dr. Malvern had just told him Sam gave a slight nod of his head as he answered,

"Just one Dr. Malvern, do you have an estimated length of time that I'll be out of the field, as well as being on the certain physical restrictions?"

From his standing position beside Sam's side of the bed, with a knowing smile on his lips as if he could read Sam like a book, Dr. Malvern chuckled, slowly shaking his head as he said,

"You don't like being confined to the sidelines, do you Mr. Cooper?"

Before Sam had a chance to reply, from beside him Beth interceded,

"You have no idea."

Still dealing with his fit of chuckles Dr. Malvern nodded his head as he replied,

"I figured as much. You didn't strike me as a man who willingly sits on the sidelines while there is action taking place; you strike me more as a man who liked to be in the middle of the action, no matter what. So to finally answer your question Sam, I believe that you will have to remain out of the field for about a month or more depending upon your recovery progress; you will have to work on rebuilding the chest muscles that the bullet damaged, it'll be a lot of work."

His mind quickly absorbing all of Dr. Malvern's words a smile identical to Beth's spread across Sam's face. In just a few days he would finally be able to leave this cold and overly sterile hospital, and head home. The realizing fact that he would have to rebuild the muscles in his chest had no affect on Sam; there seemed to be some positive advantages to choosing a gym for the location of the Red Cell's off sight headquarters. Not only that but the added fact that everyone: Mick, Gina, Prophet, and especially Beth, would do anything they can to help him regain what he had lost. Still smiling Sam looked back at Dr. Malvern and replied,

"Thank you Dr. Malvern, you have no idea how much all of this means to me; everything that you've just said as well as everything that you've done for me. I am grateful for all of it."

Silent, taken back by Sam's immense gratitude, Dr. Malvern stepped closer to Sam's side of the bed, and gently clasped Sam's shoulder as he said,

"You're very welcome Sam Cooper; after all, the world needs more FBI agents like you and your team…" Dr. Malvern exchanged a glance with Dr. Bloom, "Well now that Dr. Bloom and I have said everything that we needed to tell you, we'll leave the two of you to your privacy with your new little girl."

That said both Dr. Bloom and Dr. Malvern stepped out of the room. A calm peaceful silence filled Beth's and Sam's room; the only sound to be heard came from little Alexis as she sucked on her fisted hand. A brief soft laugh escaped Beth's lips as she gently worked Alexis' fist out of her mouth and said,

"Looks like someone would like to have some Breakfast of their own. Wait just a minute Alexis while Mommy gets herself ready and then you can eat as much as you want."

Despite the fact that it was just her and Sam in the room Beth retrieved one of the extra blankets from the shelf beneath the portable crib. Unhooking the concealed snaps on the front of her gown Beth swiftly removed it revealing her succulent breast; to which she guided Alexis' hungry mouth before she covered her from public view with the blanket. Then, as Alexis continued to consume her Breakfast, the hospital phone situated on the nightstand beside Sam gave a shrill ring. With slow ginger movements Sam retrieved the phone and answered,

"Room 472"

Prophet's smooth southern voice filtered through the phone as he answered,

"Hey Sam, I'm glad to hear that you guys are already awake. Like I promised you and Beth last night, I'm calling to give you guys a heads up on our arrival. We're all in route now, and should be there in about ten minutes or so."

A new smile slipped its way onto Sam's lips, this one of eager anticipation; his eyes sliding over towards Beth as he replied,

"Hey thanks for the heads up Prophet. I'll let Beth know; hopefully it will be enough time for her to finish feeding Alexis. No doubt she'll be as excited as I am about what you all are doing."

A laugh travelled through the phone as Prophet said,

"I'm sure she will be; alright Sam we'll see you guys in a few…"

After one last 'ok' Sam and Prophet both ended the call. Gingerly stretching his arm once more Sam returned the phone to its rightful place on its stationary receiver. Turning his head back around to face Beth Sam could already see the faint trace of a smile about to form on her lips as she inquired,

"The guys on their way here with the kids to visit?"

Sam gave a simple nod of his head,

"Yep, Prophet said that they should be here in about ten minutes or so."

The previously faint smile finally made its appearance on Beth's face, making her face shine brightly like the rising sun as she said,

"That's great, and it's a perfect amount of allotted time too because I do believe that this little angel is just about finished eating her Breakfast."

Just as the words flowed from Beth's lips she peaked a glance under the blanket, only to fling the blanket off her shoulder a second later; Alexis had finally filled her little tummy and was done eating. Working one handed Beth swiftly reattached the open section of her gown back up; making herself presentable for when everyone else arrived. The fact that their family of teammates as well as their kids were on their way here continued to circle freely within Beth's mind; time passed by in a blur, and in no time at all there came the sound of a knock at the hospital room's door. With identical expressions of eager anticipation on both of their faces Sam quickly answered,

"Door is open guys, come on in."

As the door creaked its way open the unmistakably beautiful sound of children giggling floated into the room accompanied by the sound of children's feet running across the floor. Into the room, as if flying through the air, raced Sarah and Wyatt with Garcia, Mick, Prophet, Gina, and little Madeline. To see Madeline balanced upon Gina's hip was a truly genuine surprise for Beth and Sam since Gina had dropped her off at her sister's place the morning that they received the case. The smile that was spread across Gina's face, as if she was pleased by their surprised responses, told Beth that picking up Madeline had been a last minute decision; an unexpected surprise, but one that was well received by Beth and Sam.

Both Beth's and Sam's still lingering feelings of surprise were quickly dissolved when they took in the beautiful sight of Sarah's and Wyatt's smiling faces as they stood against Sam's side of the hospital bed, hopping around like little bunnies. As Sarah and Wyatt continued to hop up and down beside the bed with their hands planted firmly on top of it Sam came to understand what they were trying to do- they were trying desperately to jump up onto the bed. Looking over at Mick it was as if he had read Sam's mind and knew exactly what he was about to ask him to do because before Sam could utter a word Mick swooped in and individually placed Sarah and Wyatt on top of the bed. Immediately upon finding themselves seated on the bed Sarah and Wyatt scooted themselves up closer between Sam and Beth. While Sarah's eyes immediately fell upon Alexis' bundled form cradled in Beth's arms, Wyatt's eyes fell upon Sam's hospital gown covered body. Wyatt stared intently at the patch of gown that covered Sam's chest as if her could clearly see the bandages that were concealed beneath it as he said,

"Boo-boo Daddy?"

Nodding his head slowly Sam replied,

"Yeah buddy I got a boo-boo, but don't worry I'm ok now, the doctors patched me up."

As if he were pleased with Sam's simple response Wyatt turned his head to look over at Beth. A look of pure joy shined brightly upon Wyatt's little face as he glanced back at Sam and pointed his finger at Alexis as he exclaimed,

"Daddy, baby!"

To hear the pure excitement and awe in Wyatt's voice Sam couldn't help but laugh softly as he said,

"That's right buddy, baby; that's your baby sister Alexis."

His eyes still beholding the new tiny form cradled in Beth's arms, a whisper of 'Alexi' rolled off of Wyatt's lips as he leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on Alexis' cheek. A round of awes circulated throughout the room at Wyatt's preciously sweet gesture. Using a tissue to dab the trickle of tears from her eyes Garcia said,

"Would you look at that, Wyatt's already being a little charmer."

A mischievous smirk filled Prophet's lips as he glanced quickly over at Garcia and said,

"Well what do you expect from a boy whose parents are Sam and Beth?"

As a second collection of laughter filled the room Prophet stepped closer to Beth's side of the bed and asked,

"So how is our little Miss D…"

At that moment, before the rest of the word could leave Prophet's lips, Beth cut him off,

"So help me Prophet, finish that sentence and in therefore nickname our daughter 'little Miss Daisy', and I will strip you of your Godfather title till I see fit to reinstate it. And don't think that I won't do it because you know I will."

Shocked by Beth's threatening words Prophet diverted his eyes, his cheeks pink with unwelcomed embarrassment. Wanting desperately to fix the unintentional mess that he had created Prophet raised his head, locking his eyes with Beth's once more as he said,

"I'm sorry Beth, I didn't mean to make you upset. I only meant to call Alexis little Miss Daisy this one time as a joke. I have no intention of ever calling her that again; besides I think the nicknames that you guys have already given her are perfect for her. Please forgive me Beth."

With the sincerity ringing strongly in Prophet's words Beth knew that she couldn't remain mad at him. Allowing a soft warm smile to caress her lips Beth replied,

"Of course I'll forgive you Prophet. Knowing now that you were only calling Alexis little Miss Daisy as a joke, there's no way that I can remain angry at you. And to answer your unfinished question, she is fine this morning, just being her little angelic self."

Still balancing Madeline on her hip Gina made her way over beside Prophet, shaking her head in exaggeration as she said,

"Man Prophet, I think that's the fastest you've ever worked to save your own ass and redeem yourself in Beth's eyes. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you're starting to become an old softie."

Staring at Gina in mock disbelief Prophet crossed his arms over his chest as if to stand his ground as he replied,

"I don't know what you are talking about Gina. There is absolutely no way that I am becoming soft. Not now, not ever."

Watching and listening to the quarreling match that was beginning to unfold Beth knew that something needed to be done to end the match before it had a chance to begin. Even though Prophet's quarreling matches with his fellow teammates were usually harmless fun they usually held a tremendous impact which was something that they didn't need unleashed in the hospital room with the kids present. Seeing Gina's body give a slight tremble as a fresh laugh bubbled its way up her throat Beth knew that now was the time to intervene; clearing her throat rather loudly Beth raised her voice slightly as she said,

"Sorry to interrupt your little quarreling match of a conversation, but something has just been tugging at my brain ever since you guys stepped into the room. Gina, where in the world did you pick up this adorable little girl that you have straddled on your hip? I thought you said that she was spending a few days with your sister?"

Looking like a child that had just been caught red-handed stealing a snack before dinner Gina diverted her eyes, taking a moment to glance down at Madeline before she replied,

"She was at my sister's and I originally had every intention of letting her remain there and to meet Alexis when we all got home, but my heart couldn't go through with it. I couldn't deprive her of the chance to meet her newest cousin alongside Sarah and Wyatt. So Garcia and I took a detoured route by my sister's place and picked her up."

Gazing through the fresh silence at Madeline as she laid her head of dark brown hair upon Gina's shoulder Beth's lips curled even further at the their tips as she said,

"Well unplanned or not I'm awfully glad that you decided to bring her along with you after all. I love every chance that I get to see her and spend time with her as well as watch her interact with Sarah and Wyatt. When the three of them are together they are like the three Musketeers. And now with Alexis joining their ranks they can now be called the four Musketeers."

A foot away from Gina and Madeline, standing near the end of the hospital bed, Mick's cheeks burned bright red as he tried very hard not to laugh at the comparison that Beth had just made but his attempts were crumbled. The laughter that he had tried so hard to contain erupted from Mick's lips like a hysterical bombshell, and lasting longer than a minute. Finally regaining control of himself Mick's cheeks were once again a deep shade of red only this time from the embarrassment of his outburst; the smirk of realization still fixed firmly upon his lips as he questioned,

"Hang on, did you seriously just compare the kids to characters that are not only fictional but are from a Disney movie?"

Beth's face remained neutral as she casually shrugged her shoulders,

"So what if I did. It was simply meant as a mere statement, not something that can be brought up for a debated discussion. There is no harm in describing the kids as being like the group of Musketeers."

Finding no arguable fault in Beth's explanation Mick quickly dropped the discussion, surrendering him mentally in defeat to Beth. Looking back over at Gina Beth saw a mischievous glint sparkling in her eye; no doubt she wouldn't let Mick forget about this moment for a good long while. The same mischievous glint shined in Prophet's eyes as well as he broke the silence and asked,

"So do either one of you know when you'll be released from this prison-like establishment that they call a hospital?"

Grateful of Prophet's quick thinking, so as to smoothly change the topic of discussion and reveal his truly colorful feelings towards hospitals in the process, a soft chuckle passed through Sam's lips. It wasn't much of a secret that every member of the Red Cell team, even Garcia as well, held certain distaste for hospitals and their sterile atmospheres. For a second that single well known fact held everyone's minds before Sam answered,

"As a matter of fact Prophet we do already know when we'll both be released from this particular establishment. Both of our doctors came by together to visit us just a short while ago before you called to give us warning of your arrival…"

Desperate to hear when the two of them and little Alexis would be discharged, while hating the fact that Sam appeared to be purposefully stalling with his answer, Garcia gave a small huff of impatient air as she said,

"You are purposefully holding out on answering Prophet's question Sam. Quit stalling and just tell us already, please."

Comprehending all of what she had just said Garcia quickly clamped her mouth shut while presenting the look of a petrified mouse on her face. This time the whole room burst with laughter as Sam said,

"Alright Penelope I'm sorry, I'll get to the point now. Well according to Dr. Bloom, Beth and Alexis should be able to be released in two days time. As for me, Dr. Malvern says that as long as I don't start showing any signs of infection between now and then, that I should be able to be released the day after Beth and Alexis. Another thing that Dr. Malvern explained to me is that I won't be allowed to return to field work for about a month, since I'll have to work on rebuilding my chest muscles that the bullet damaged."

Despite having already anticipated this particular set back the news still managed to hit Garcia, Gina, Mick, and Prophet with a bombshell of shock. Being the first to recover from the news Mick blinked his eyes a few times as if to clear out his head as he questioned,

"So what does that mean exactly, for the team? Are we going to be put on hold from any new cases while you recover?"

Sam shook his head no,

"Not necessarily Mick. Yes I will technically be placed on medical leave, but that doesn't mean that I'll stop assisting you guys on any new cases that we may receive. I'm not going to be allowed to work in the field but I will still be working from head quarters in any way that I can, and work on my chest muscles in between. And if we do get a case that is out of town or out of state then Beth will fill in as acting team leader like she did when I went to LA to work on the Veronica Dae case."

Wanting to give her teammates some additional reassurance Beth added,

"And just so you guys know, so as to help our team I will only be taking two weeks of maternity leave. I will still be bringing Alexis in to the office with me before and after that time, but Sam as well as Garcia at times will watch her while we work on a case."

Absorbing Beth's well spoken words a small but simple nagging fact clung to Gina's thoughts till she finally spoke her mind,

"But that would mean that we'd be working one man down out in the field. I know that we've done that before, but how are we going to make it work on any large scale cases?"

Gina's words were like a forest fire just starting to building and spread out of control. Acting calmly to extinguish the flames Mick swiftly draped an arm around Gina's shoulders as a means of providing her with comfort as he reassured,

"Don't think about that right now Love. We'll deal with it together as a team if the time should arise."

Sam, agreeing whole-heartedly with what Mick had said, gave a nod of his head as he added,

"Mick's right Gina now isn't the time for us to worry about things that could happen later on with possible future cases. For right now all we can really do is leave it alone and deal with it when the time comes, together as a team as Mick said. Then even if we do get assigned to a major case, be it simply out of town or out of state, I'll have a talk with Director Fickler. The two of us will figure something out, maybe get someone from Hotch's team to come and temporarily join our team for the duration of the case? We'll just have to wait and see, that's all we can really do."

With Sam's last words marked the end of the discussion. Taking both Mick's and Sam's words to heart Gina pushed all of the annoyingly pressing thoughts to the back of her mind where she could dig them out at a later date. Sensing the room's atmosphere return back once again to its original calm, relaxing self Mick looked over at Beth still cradling Alexis in her arms. Rubbing his hands together like a child with a specific plan already formed in their mind Mick asked,

"So Beth, are we going to be able to start getting our second turn at holding Alexis now or what? Or did you just say that to us last night to get us to leave?"

Rolling her eyes at Mick's last comment Beth heaved an exaggerated sigh as she replied,

"Yes Mick you all are still going to get your chance to hold Alexis for a second time. Although I'm starting to consider whether you should still get your turn after your last comment."

As fast as turning off a light the childish glint dissolved from Mick's eyes, leaving in its place full-fledged fear of Beth's words. Despite having hoped to punish Mick for his last comment the plan quickly fell to pieces when Beth saw the pure fright in Mick's eyes. Unable to stop herself Beth released a whole-hearted laugh from her lips. Wiping away the few stray tears that slid down her cheeks from her now watery eyes Beth was choked by her laughter as she said,

"Relax Mick I was only pulling your leg to get back at you for the last comment you made after asking if you guys were ever going to get a chance to hold Alexis again. Oh man, you should have seen your face, it was so pure and genuine and just perfect. Maybe now you and Prophet will finally know better than to try and play certain tricks and jokes on me, unless you just want it thrown back in your face."

As the last of Beth's laughter finally died off Prophet made his way over to Mick. Standing side by side both Mick and Prophet had the same scowling expression painted over their faces. Though Mick twisted his jaw around, as if wanting to say something, neither of them spoke for they knew that it would be futile. Taking in Mick's and Prophet's mute responses Gina just smirked, not even trying to hide it, as she remarked,

"And the two dogs have finally learned to heal on command without making a sound. That's impressive work."

Holding up her hand for Gina to high-five Gina said,

"You said it my fair Gina."

While watching all of the continuing action from his nice and comfortable hospital bed Sam knew that it was now his turn to bring this seemingly harmless fun to a halt before it could get any farther out of control. Raising his hand up in the air like a traffic cop directing traffic Sam swiftly intervened,

"Alright guys I think that's enough joking around for one day. Why don't we all hang up our towels of jokes for today before things get too out of hand, and pick it back up some other time?"

Noticing the slight crest fallen expression on each of her teammates' faces at Sam's suggested Beth stepped in,

"And if you guys are good and do as Sam says, then I'll tell you all who gets to be the first to hold Alexis."

Like children being presented with a surprise present of delicious candy, everyone's faces were quickly altered to reveal looks of bright excitement. Beth paused for a moment to see if anyone would still try to speak. Finding only silence she continued,

"Ok, so after some careful consideration I've decided that the person who gets to hold Alexis is…Sarah."

Not expecting to be included in the drawing selection to get to hold Alexis Sarah was completely stunned. Her face still frozen in shock Sarah slowly lifted her head to stare up at Beth, her voice cracking as she questioned,

"Me, Mommy are you sure I go first? I not big enough to holdAlexis."

Nudging Sarah's shoulder with her elbow Beth nodded her head,

"Of course I'm sure sweetie. Not only are you her Big Sister, but I think that you are the perfect size to hold Alexis. If you want I'll cradle my arms around yours while you hold her to help keep you steady, ok?"

Eyes swimming with nervousness Sarah gave her head a vigorous nod of approval. Spreading her legs apart into a wide V-shape Beth swiftly repositioned Alexis so that she was holding her in one arm before looking back over at Sarah and patting the now vacant area between her legs. Moving slowly as if afraid that she might hurt Beth, Sarah maneuvered her way into Beth's lap. Using her free hand Beth helped Sarah position her arms in preparation of holding Alexis. Wrapping her arms around Sarah, as if giving her a backwards hug, Beth helped Sarah keep her arms steady as she placed Alexis into Sarah's awaiting arms. Actually holding her new baby sister in her arms Sarah's face beamed brightly with pride.

The scene before them was absolutely beautiful while Sarah's smile was contagious as it quickly spread around between Mick, Gina, Garcia, and Prophet. Seeing how happy Sarah was to be allowed to hold Alexis first was all it took to dissolve the four Aunts' and Uncles' disappointment. Not wanting to miss this adorable picture perfect moment Garcia quickly pulled out her camera to capture the moment forever on digital film. Not a word was heard out of Mick, Gina, Garcia, or Prophet; the four of them stood in silence not wanting to disrupt Sarah's special moment with little Alexis. The four of them just watched and waited patiently for their turn to hold Alexis.


End file.
